Just to jump in - Throne Of Blood is another brilliant Shakespeare inspired Kurosawa film(It's a samurai Macbeth).
Also I think it's only like £2:00 to rent out on Amazon.
Film The Redcafe Movie review thread
- Thread starter golden_blunder
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Also I think it's only like £2:00 to rent out on Amazon.
Ah crap. Was gonna watch this tonight!
Bloodshot
Vin Diesel smashes things after using an infinite lives cheat. Some of the action set-pieces were really stylistically shot but apart from that, this was awful. Flat pacing, awful 'acting', stupid dialogue, too many edits in the action scenes, Vin Diesel, a mess of a plot and just a dull movie. One of the rare films where I spent a chuck of it staring at my phone because I was so bored. Considering it's a dumb superhero-action movie, this should never have been the case. Surprised the same guy who wrote Arrival wrote this garbage. Toby Kebbell has some sick dance moves though. 2/10
Dora And The Lost City Of Gold
Rough start but eventually finds its groove. Fun for kids. Man Eva Longoria has turned proper fat 5/10
Sonic
Probably the best video game movie since Mortal Kombat (viewed through nostalgia glasses). Fun, simple story. Likeable characters. Jim Carrey. Nice nods to the game. An enjoyable movie 7/10
Rough start but eventually finds its groove. Fun for kids. Man Eva Longoria has turned proper fat 5/10
Sonic
Probably the best video game movie since Mortal Kombat (viewed through nostalgia glasses). Fun, simple story. Likeable characters. Jim Carrey. Nice nods to the game. An enjoyable movie 7/10
She started filming that 1 month after giving birth so hardly suprising.
Right right!! Makes sense! My wife did suggest that but I thought she discovered them sweet sweet pies.
Ma (2019)
Just caught up with this on Sky Cinema and to be honest it wasn't a complete waste of my 90-odd minutes. I was more intrigued by what they could do with Octavia Spencer in a psychological horror and whether I could be convinced that she can be some kind of deranged killer. By all intents they almost pulled it off. I just reckon if you're going to go against type with an actor that is usually associated with strong, positive roles you have to go all in.
Unfortunately, the script came up a little short and I cant help feeling there was a missed opportunity here. Don't get me wrong it's not a bad film. It just lacked the intensity that a good psycho-horror should have. I'll forgive the ridiculous and completely implausible plot as they are usually essential ingredients for these types of films but it was great to see Juliet Lewis again. She still looks great. Spencer did her best as the twisted loner who hooks up with a bunch of teenagers who end up with a bit more than they bargained for. Great story but just in the end very predictable. The runner scene was the stand out moment and the 'whiteface' line was hilarious. I think that kid got off lightly all things considered.
Anyway, not a bad attempt but just standard fare to be honest. If only Spencer's character had been given more depth it could have been a great little movie. She must have had lots of fun making it though.
I'm giving this a 6/10.
Just caught up with this on Sky Cinema and to be honest it wasn't a complete waste of my 90-odd minutes. I was more intrigued by what they could do with Octavia Spencer in a psychological horror and whether I could be convinced that she can be some kind of deranged killer. By all intents they almost pulled it off. I just reckon if you're going to go against type with an actor that is usually associated with strong, positive roles you have to go all in.
Unfortunately, the script came up a little short and I cant help feeling there was a missed opportunity here. Don't get me wrong it's not a bad film. It just lacked the intensity that a good psycho-horror should have. I'll forgive the ridiculous and completely implausible plot as they are usually essential ingredients for these types of films but it was great to see Juliet Lewis again. She still looks great. Spencer did her best as the twisted loner who hooks up with a bunch of teenagers who end up with a bit more than they bargained for. Great story but just in the end very predictable. The runner scene was the stand out moment and the 'whiteface' line was hilarious. I think that kid got off lightly all things considered.
Anyway, not a bad attempt but just standard fare to be honest. If only Spencer's character had been given more depth it could have been a great little movie. She must have had lots of fun making it though.
I'm giving this a 6/10.
I know you've watched a few WKW what else?
Rashomon is worth a watch just cuz of how iconic it is. Throne of Blood is another Shakespearean take and Ikiru of course.
My Blueberry Nights
Wong Kar Wai only English speaking film to date. The story follows a young women traveling America after a break up.
For some reason this has a bad rep with both reviewers and the audiences but I'm honestly not sure why. Wong Kar Wai style crosses over to Western cinema with ease, Khondji(Might be the first film which Wong didn't have Doyle as the cinematographer) perfectly captures late night drinking in bars and also managing to turn a Las Vegas car sale into a work of art(One particular shot of Natalie Portman, really stands out). The soundtrack is of course brilliant.
But the real highlight for me was just how different it is towards Wong other works. While it still has the usual shtick - certain uses of colour, slow mo shots and limited dialogue. There isn't any of the pure romantic fantasy elements that are normally so common in his films(Chunking Express or Fallen Angel for example,) there's no shoot outs(No one fires a gun which is a rare thing in Wong film), no odd ball characters or conversations in empty football stadiums. It's instead all bars or casinos full of shitty and depressed characters.
In particular Natalie Portman and Rachel Weisz, both go through certain events(Trying not to spoil it for anyone)and there's no ironic wise wisdom to be learned at the end and no nostalgic longing, the characters take the hit life gives them and they move on, mostly entirely unchanged. Oh and David Strathiirn character is having some little difficulties. Norah Jones acting and her overall character seem to get brought up as the low point in the film but I think people misunderstand her role. She playing everyone in their earlier 20's, idealistic, native and while moving through life meeting older and more damage people than herself, with her take away again being again no real personal change.
It's road movie that ends up finishing up where it started, a 90 minute character piece where nobody changes or learns anything, which doesn't sound like a massive seling point for the film but somehow it works. It's not up there with the very best of Wong works but it's still worth you're time.
Oh and Jude Law has a Yorkshire accent for some reason and there's a nice short appearance from the singer Cat Power.
8/10
Wong Kar Wai only English speaking film to date. The story follows a young women traveling America after a break up.
For some reason this has a bad rep with both reviewers and the audiences but I'm honestly not sure why. Wong Kar Wai style crosses over to Western cinema with ease, Khondji(Might be the first film which Wong didn't have Doyle as the cinematographer) perfectly captures late night drinking in bars and also managing to turn a Las Vegas car sale into a work of art(One particular shot of Natalie Portman, really stands out). The soundtrack is of course brilliant.
But the real highlight for me was just how different it is towards Wong other works. While it still has the usual shtick - certain uses of colour, slow mo shots and limited dialogue. There isn't any of the pure romantic fantasy elements that are normally so common in his films(Chunking Express or Fallen Angel for example,) there's no shoot outs(No one fires a gun which is a rare thing in Wong film), no odd ball characters or conversations in empty football stadiums. It's instead all bars or casinos full of shitty and depressed characters.
In particular Natalie Portman and Rachel Weisz, both go through certain events(Trying not to spoil it for anyone)and there's no ironic wise wisdom to be learned at the end and no nostalgic longing, the characters take the hit life gives them and they move on, mostly entirely unchanged. Oh and David Strathiirn character is having some little difficulties. Norah Jones acting and her overall character seem to get brought up as the low point in the film but I think people misunderstand her role. She playing everyone in their earlier 20's, idealistic, native and while moving through life meeting older and more damage people than herself, with her take away again being again no real personal change.
It's road movie that ends up finishing up where it started, a 90 minute character piece where nobody changes or learns anything, which doesn't sound like a massive seling point for the film but somehow it works. It's not up there with the very best of Wong works but it's still worth you're time.
Oh and Jude Law has a Yorkshire accent for some reason and there's a nice short appearance from the singer Cat Power.
8/10
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I've rewatched a few early, iconic horror films. It's the first time I've seen them as an adult so they kinda felt like completely new films, especially seeing them in crisp blu-ray quality. Brief assessments:
Frankenstein (1931) - Boris Karloff was just fantastic.
Bride of Frankenstein (1935) - A bit striking to watch it straight after the original whatwith the change of tone and everything. Dr Pretorius walks into the universe and it still works.
Dracula (1931) - I'm with Christopher Lee on his assement of Bela Lugosi, not really a fan of his performance. Rather anemic film but like Frankenstein the lack of a musical score produced some sporadic arresting scenes.
King Kong (1933) - I had forgotten just how high the body count was in this. People eaten by dinosaurs and thrown off buildings, a real bloodbath. The human drama was hilariously inept at times.
Godzilla (1954) - It wasn't really about Godzilla at all. I almost forgot about that giant lizard seeing as it was all about nuclear war.
Frankenstein (1931) - Boris Karloff was just fantastic.
Bride of Frankenstein (1935) - A bit striking to watch it straight after the original whatwith the change of tone and everything. Dr Pretorius walks into the universe and it still works.
Dracula (1931) - I'm with Christopher Lee on his assement of Bela Lugosi, not really a fan of his performance. Rather anemic film but like Frankenstein the lack of a musical score produced some sporadic arresting scenes.
King Kong (1933) - I had forgotten just how high the body count was in this. People eaten by dinosaurs and thrown off buildings, a real bloodbath. The human drama was hilariously inept at times.
Godzilla (1954) - It wasn't really about Godzilla at all. I almost forgot about that giant lizard seeing as it was all about nuclear war.
I like Lugosi's shtick but Dracula is quite a naff film. The Spanish version is a much better tale, although the actor playing Dracula isn't very distinct.
My standouts are Bride, Invisible Man, Wolfman, Dr Jekyll (talkie), Phantom (Silent).
The homunculi in Bride and the Hyde transformation in the silent version are still amazing effects, whilst Dracula's bat on a string can't have ever looked good.
My standouts are Bride, Invisible Man, Wolfman, Dr Jekyll (talkie), Phantom (Silent).
The homunculi in Bride and the Hyde transformation in the silent version are still amazing effects, whilst Dracula's bat on a string can't have ever looked good.
What about Nosferatu? I remember that making a very strong impression on me when I was younger.
Well I'm sorry if I failed to specify that I was referring to Universal horrors. I'll be more precise next time:
Top 5 French beauties and their beasts:
1. La Belle et La Bete
2. Esmeralda and Quasimodo
3. nth wife and Barbe bleue
4. Of Age Red Riding Hood and The Wolf
5. Simone de Beauvoir and Jean Paul Sartre
Islands of Lost Souls is my fav pre-code horror, universal monsters inc ain't got nothing on the panther woman, also Dracula's Daughter >>>> Dracula.
One of the finest silent horrors.
I watched a bit of a shit film last night Nilssy, it was called La migliore offerta, by Tornatore, and was a bit of a damp squid and highly predictable. It had Geoffrey Rush and Donald Sutherland in it which made it somewhat watchable, but overall very meh.
Apart from that, and to answer your earlier question, I've been watching loads of stuff, with more or less success:
- loads of TV shows of course
- Once upon a time in America, Pulp Fiction, Good Time, Call me by your name, A bigger splash, Matchstick Men, The New World, Contagion, Logan Lucky were all re-watches
- Miracle in cell 7 was decent but rather forgettable
- Ingrid goes west was charming
- I loved Chungking Express as I told you and need to get to Days of being wild
- I enjoyed Miller's crossing which I hadn't seen before, quite meta but fun
- I watched this random film Woman in gold about a Klimt painting (based on a true story), it was ok
- Mother! had some interesting things going on but ultimately was a huge mess
- I've been going through The Rock's filmography, I have no idea why but it fascinates me; I also don't understand how Alexandra Daddario is meant to be his daughter in San Andreas
- I watched Gaspar Noe's Love, I'm not a massive fan of his and I thought that while there were some interesting things in it, it turned out a bit shit; but at least, he's trying
- Paterson was cute and enjoyable, I have no bad things to say about it
- I really loved Midsommar
- in the romcom genre, One Day was acceptable thanks in large parts to Anna Hathaway's charming ways
On my list are Barry Lyndon, Days of being wild, Rear Window, Vertigo, Silence, The man who killed Don Quixote, Melancholia, The Beach Bum, Before Sunset and Before Midnight, Don't look now, The Yards and Little Odessa.
That's neato.
I also made the mistake of watching that Tornatore film, can't even remember what possessed me to watch it.
You should watch some Spanish films as well in order to tap into the cultural nerve some more.
I also made the mistake of watching that Tornatore film, can't even remember what possessed me to watch it.
You should watch some Spanish films as well in order to tap into the cultural nerve some more.
Oh yes actually I have, a couple. They were meh, I can't even remember the names.
Any you recommend?
EDIT: on Tornatore, is he a recognized director, generally speaking? It's the first film of his I've watched, and I have to say it doesn't make me want to discover any others.
Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown is the first film that springs to mind when I think of Madrid.
I think he's mostly recognized as a director of maudlin foreign films for people who wants their foreign films to be very easily digestible.
Code 8 - Finally saw this. The concept behind this is very intriguing for me. But I feel like this needed to be a series rather than a movie.
It feels like it just ended. The world building is quite cool. but it needed more time to flesh out some characters.
It felt like 4400, Heroes type of thing but just needed more time. Not sure if there will be a sequel, but if there is, need more time spent on the characters and their powers
It feels like it just ended. The world building is quite cool. but it needed more time to flesh out some characters.
It felt like 4400, Heroes type of thing but just needed more time. Not sure if there will be a sequel, but if there is, need more time spent on the characters and their powers
Titus. A wild Andronicus adaptation. Era-bending, theme blending, surreal operatic mayhem reminiscent of Jodorowsky's Holy Mountain or Jankovic's The Tragedy of Man. It seems amazing that it was a big budget studio release, it's so mad and ungainly. Looks real lush and the direction is quite stunning. More Julie Taymor for me.
Frida. Glossy Kahlo biopic produced by Hollywood slebs. The script is as bad and as shallow as I expected but Taymor again crafts those delightful visuals to make it worthwhile.
Immortals. Rehashing of the tales of Theseus and the Titanomachy. Like Tarsem Singh's previous films The Cell and The Fall there is a good amount of style to it. It also has a couple of fine set pieces, with a great fight sequence at the end. The story though is needlessly confusing with mythical staples rewritten and famous names bearing no resemblance to their previous incarnations. It's very long and frequently boring. Maybe skip this one @SteveJ unless you have time on your hands.
The Painted Bird. One of those war through child's eyes films. Finely composed photography but too clinical and lacking in texture for my tastes. It does have a couple of very nice shots, particularly one featuring the titular painted bird. For all its supposed brutality I was left fairly unmoved by the violence and I felt a distinct lack of atmosphere due to the contrived nature of the thing. The presence of Udo Kier, Harvey Keitel and even a Wilhelm scream really weren't helping. Come and See, Ivan's Childhood, Diamond's of the Night and the films of Jancso and Tarr are the most obvious comparisons/imitated, I don't think Painted Bird has the weight to be in the same class. Everyone else has gone gaga over it though.
Frida. Glossy Kahlo biopic produced by Hollywood slebs. The script is as bad and as shallow as I expected but Taymor again crafts those delightful visuals to make it worthwhile.
Immortals. Rehashing of the tales of Theseus and the Titanomachy. Like Tarsem Singh's previous films The Cell and The Fall there is a good amount of style to it. It also has a couple of fine set pieces, with a great fight sequence at the end. The story though is needlessly confusing with mythical staples rewritten and famous names bearing no resemblance to their previous incarnations. It's very long and frequently boring. Maybe skip this one @SteveJ unless you have time on your hands.
The Painted Bird. One of those war through child's eyes films. Finely composed photography but too clinical and lacking in texture for my tastes. It does have a couple of very nice shots, particularly one featuring the titular painted bird. For all its supposed brutality I was left fairly unmoved by the violence and I felt a distinct lack of atmosphere due to the contrived nature of the thing. The presence of Udo Kier, Harvey Keitel and even a Wilhelm scream really weren't helping. Come and See, Ivan's Childhood, Diamond's of the Night and the films of Jancso and Tarr are the most obvious comparisons/imitated, I don't think Painted Bird has the weight to be in the same class. Everyone else has gone gaga over it though.
I love Titus, partly because of the madness you mentioned. And because certain scenes are unforgettable.
The Assistant
Its rave reviews are something of a mystery; I was utterly bored throughout its duration. While the premise is no doubt important these days, there's no plot to speak of, very little character development and it was just a slog from beginning to end. Had a quick look at other user reviews and like mine, they're completely at odds with those of the critics. A waste of a tenner.
Avoid
Its rave reviews are something of a mystery; I was utterly bored throughout its duration. While the premise is no doubt important these days, there's no plot to speak of, very little character development and it was just a slog from beginning to end. Had a quick look at other user reviews and like mine, they're completely at odds with those of the critics. A waste of a tenner.
Avoid
I tend to experience this a lot with modern movies. 90% is just utter crap.
Would be interested to know what you think of Breaking the Waves if you ever get round to it. I think it's the best Von Trier film - oddly restrained.
I vaguely remember a film with Emily Watson years ago but can't remember if it was Breaking The Waves? It was on my list along with Antichrist but couldn't get hold of those two.
Are you a von Trier 'fan'?
Europa is another brilliant von trier film.
Yeah need to check out his earlier stuff too.
More a fan than not a fan but I find some of his films hit and miss. Haven't been a fan of his recent works at all.
I will say though that he seems to be effortless in his ability to make movies. Like he has an innate natural talent for it. You can see that in Europa which somebody mentioned above - just a really cool film (his debut, I think?).
Randeep Hooda. Try and watch Highway by Imtiaz Ali. Probably his best performance. Decent film too.
Anyone know some good movies that take place in the Deep South? Watched Cool Hand Luke & A Soldier's Story a while ago and I just really enjoy how 'hot' it feels as well as the slow laid-back culture (not the racism obviously).
Mississippi Burning is a great movie....and obviously A Time To Kill.
Mississippi Masala is a bit leftfield as well.
Wait, people actually think A time to kill is a good film?
Cheers. I'll have a look and see if it's on Prime or Netflix.
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof for another Newman flick. Deliverance is a must. In The Heat of The Night. Steel Magnolias or Fried Green Tomatoes for ‘chick-flicks‘.
Or S1 of True Detective for some modern HD stuff, but you’ve probably already seen that.
What's your problem with it?
You have probably already watched it but just in case, 'O Brother, Where Art Thou' is a good film. It recreates the setting and atmosphere of that region very well.