Great western starring Kurt Russell and Val Kilmer. I loved almost every minute of it and I now regard it as a modern classic about the old West. It seemed quite ludicrous how things worked back in Western times with the gun slinging and the random slaying of innocence. Thank goodness I wasn't born then.
My favorite scene has to be the ending bout between Doc Holliday and Johnny Ringo. Great lines and lots of tension.
Anyways, I highly suggest lovers of the western movies to watch this film, most of you probably have already anyways.
I maintain that Atonement should have won best picture. As HH said, it was highly engrossing and yes very moving. The performances were outstanding and the score was memorable. I enjoyed it far more than No Country For Old Men.
I have been known to cry at movies. Like when former Chicago Bear and one-time leading NFL rusher Jim Brown is felled at the last minute by machine gun fire in The Dirty Dozen -- I cried like a baby and was morose for days afterward.
The finale of The Wild Geese did it for me as a kid.
When Richard Harris's character can't make it onto the plane and begs his mate Richard Burton to shoot him so he won't be tortured by the wild savages...
More recently it could be anything, but I'm getting maudlin in my old age. The Dunkirk scene in Atonement got to me too.
Classic 1950s Western starring John Wayne, often voted the best Western of all time. Very enjoyable and undeniably epic in scope. A band of Concho Indians raid a homestead, killing the folk and making off with two young daughters. A band of folk including Wayne go in search, but this gets whittled down and the quest goes from weeks into months. Over in the UK the story has a timely relevance with the abduction (presumed) of three year old Maddie McCann, still dominating headlines a year on.
Spielberg praises The Searchers as the best cinematic treatise on racism ever, but I must say I think he overstates it in deference to his forebears, and Wayne.
In particular the ending where Wayne picks up the young daughter and says "C'mon, let's go home..." which is more a surprise than anything. He's the returning hero, when a minute earlier he's been eager to kill her for having acclimatised into a squaw, like she's been taken over by the invasion of the bodysnatchers or zombies. Then we see him retreat into the great younder in heroic style, when it's mostly no thanks to him! It's a tad self-pitying and noble.
Some comcial 1950s Western touches like out of Oklahoma! and Seven Brides... take this away from Unforgiven territory.
Wayne is a bit annoying at first, keeps saying 'That'll be the day..." no doubt inspiring a young Mr Holly. His voice is just like Baloo the bear in The Jungle Book. Actually, I think Jack's portrayal of Colonel Jessop owes just a bit to Wayne's character, that take it or leave it, I'm right schtick.
"This is where we leave you Mr Bond."
Roger Moore 1927-2017
RogueAgentSpeeding in the Tumbler...Posts: 3,676MI6 Agent
edited April 2008
NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN
Contrary to what some of my fellow AJB members here think, the Academy got it right. Screw the tearfests of some films... that's what the Lifetime Channel is for. :v
NCFOM is simply... Amazing.
Mrs. Man Face: "You wouldn't hit a lady? Would you?"
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice isUNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
Contrary to what some of my fellow AJB members here think, the Academy got it right. Screw the tearfests of some films... that's what the Lifetime Channel is for. :v
NCFOM is simply... Amazing.
Rogue I will share my problem with NCFOM with you and allow you to comment.
Spoilers Ahead
I thought the first half of the movie was amazing, but in the second half I think it went off course. Why Woody Harrelson was dropped into the picture is beyond me, other than to provide another victim. How does a guy who goes around killing people with a captive bolt pistol manage to walk around the street with it without generating suspicion. The killing of Josh Brolin's character was a disappointment, basically done off camera, I initially wasn't sure what happened. I would have preferred a confrontation with his nemesis. I hated the ending.
Awaiting your rebuttal.
RogueAgentSpeeding in the Tumbler...Posts: 3,676MI6 Agent
Contrary to what some of my fellow AJB members here think, the Academy got it right. Screw the tearfests of some films... that's what the Lifetime Channel is for. :v
NCFOM is simply... Amazing.
Rogue I will share my problem with NCFOM with you and allow you to comment.
Spoilers Ahead
I thought the first half of the movie was amazing, but in the second half I think it went off course. Why Woody Harrelson was dropped into the picture is beyond me, other than to provide another victim. How does a guy who goes around killing people with a captive bolt pistol manage to walk around the street with it without generating suspicion. The killing of Josh Brolin's character was a disappointment, basically done off camera, I initially wasn't sure what happened. I would have preferred a confrontation with his nemesis. I hated the ending.
Awaiting your rebuttal.
I'd be glad to share what I think in a PM, Barry.
You're trying to sabotage a modern day masterpiece...put the spoiler tags on, man. )
Mrs. Man Face: "You wouldn't hit a lady? Would you?"
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice isUNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
Contrary to what some of my fellow AJB members here think, the Academy got it right. Screw the tearfests of some films... that's what the Lifetime Channel is for. :v
NCFOM is simply... Amazing.
I completely agree. I consider NCFOM to be a masterpiece and by far the best film of the year. Attonement on the other hand, is IMO, extremely overrated and doesn't deserve to be mentioned in the same breath as NCFOM.
"He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
RogueAgentSpeeding in the Tumbler...Posts: 3,676MI6 Agent
Contrary to what some of my fellow AJB members here think, the Academy got it right. Screw the tearfests of some films... that's what the Lifetime Channel is for. :v
NCFOM is simply... Amazing.
I completely agree. I consider NCFOM to be a masterpiece and by far the best film of the year. Attonement on the other hand, is IMO, extremely overrated and doesn't deserve to be mentioned in the same breath as NCFOM.
{[] Cheers, Dan. You see the light, my friend.
I don't think that it's as simple as Barry is trying to translate with such abandon...or more like SABOTAGE. Boy, is he going all Clinton on that one.
And BTW, I saw Attonement and it's really nothing special. There Will Be Blood, on the other hand, comes a close second to NCFOM...no Kleenex needed... 8-)
Even in my art classes, my students are all in agreement that NCFOM is a fantastic achievement and we RARELY agree on films in there.
Mrs. Man Face: "You wouldn't hit a lady? Would you?"
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice isUNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
Great western starring Kurt Russell and Val Kilmer. I loved almost every minute of it and I now regard it as a modern classic about the old West. It seemed quite ludicrous how things worked back in Western times with the gun slinging and the random slaying of innocence. Thank goodness I wasn't born then.
My favorite scene has to be the ending bout between Doc Holliday and Johnny Ringo. Great lines and lots of tension.
Anyways, I highly suggest lovers of the western movies to watch this film, most of you probably have already anyways.
I give the film a 10/10. {[]
Tombstone takes a little while to get going, and Wyatt Earp's romance in the second half is a bit awkwardly presented, but it is a great film with some really nice visuals and ranks second only to Sergio Leone's westerns (which it draws quite a bit of inspiration from) for me. Everybody is great and Val Kilmer's performance as Doc Holiday deserved an Oscar nomination. It's not the most historically accurate pic, but it is entertaining stuff.
RogueAgentSpeeding in the Tumbler...Posts: 3,676MI6 Agent
[But I have been known to cry at movies. Like when former Chicago Bear and one-time leading NFL rusher Jim Brown is felled at the last minute by machine gun fire after dropping the grenades into the ventilation shafts of the bunker that all those Nazi officers were hiding in in The Dirty Dozen -- I cried like a baby and was morose for days afterward.
With all due respect, High, Jim Brown played for the Cleveland Browns. They drafted him out of Syracuse.
Mrs. Man Face: "You wouldn't hit a lady? Would you?"
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice isUNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
Great western starring Kurt Russell and Val Kilmer. I loved almost every minute of it and I now regard it as a modern classic about the old West. It seemed quite ludicrous how things worked back in Western times with the gun slinging and the random slaying of innocence. Thank goodness I wasn't born then.
My favorite scene has to be the ending bout between Doc Holliday and Johnny Ringo. Great lines and lots of tension.
Anyways, I highly suggest lovers of the western movies to watch this film, most of you probably have already anyways.
I give the film a 10/10. {[]
Tombstone takes a little while to get going, and Wyatt Earp's romance in the second half is a bit awkwardly presented, but it is a great film with some really nice visuals and ranks second only to Sergio Leone's westerns (which it draws quite a bit of inspiration from) for me. Everybody is great and Val Kilmer's performance as Doc Holiday deserved an Oscar nomination. It's not the most historically accurate pic, but it is entertaining stuff.
I love Tombstone as well. I prefer the Leone and Eastwood Westerns, but it is indeed a great film. Kilmer was brilliant, Russell was great and the gun battles were superb. I don't agree with Tony that Wyatt Earp's romance in the second half was awkwardly presented, but I certainly agree with both of you that it is a great Western.
"He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
The Panic in Needle Park (1971), Al Pacino's first starring role, as a junkie making his way with his girlfriend on the fringes of New York City. After 37 years it's still a pretty harrowing depiction of addiction and the dreary lives addicts lead. Also interesting to see early roles for Paul Sorvino and the late Raul Julia. Oh, and there's a drug dealer played by Arnold Williams. Who? Well, two years later we saw him in a taxi, volunteering to take James Bond to a "Ku Klux Klan cookout." And, yes, even in Panic he had those weird sideburns that went all the way to the corners of his mouth!
An anime masterpiece from Studio Ghibli about the horrors of war. After the bombing of Kobe during WWII a boy Seita is left to look after his infant sister Setsuko as their father is away with the Imperial Japanese Navy. With nowhere else to go Seita takes Setsuko to their Aunt's house, who is a cruel woman and resentful of the allowance the two get as a result of their father's service. Following more insults and poor treatment from their Aunt, Seita takes Setsuko to an abandoned bomb shelter to stay. The two enjoy their life more, however grow increasingly desperate for food. Seita tries stealing food and removes all the money from his deceased mother's bank account. While there he learns of the surrender and realises his father is dead. I do not want to ruin the ending but I will say that it is deeply shocking and moving.
What makes this film so disturbingly effective is its simplicity and the fact that it is an animation. I very much doubt that the same atmosphere and emotion could have been conveyed in a live-action picture (which was recently made). The film itself is a devastating indictment on the futility and human consequences of war. The only problem with that well-meaning indictment is that by focusing solely on the plight of two Japanese orphans, and without mentioning at all the reason Japan is under attack, I can see why some would argue that the film is part of what seems an inability in some Japanese circles to face up to responsibility for the war and responsibility for some of the undeniable crimes that were committed by Japanese troops in occupied territories and against Allied POWs. Nevertheless, many Japanese civilians suffered horrendously as a result of the war, and I view this film as a crushing condemnation of war per se, rather than a way of absolving the Japanese of responsibility.
According to the extras, the director sees the film as illustrating the danger of pride over reason. Seita has a choice to stay with his Aunt and get on with it; ultimately due to his pride he decides to leave, with terrible consequences. It is based on an autobiographical novel by Nosaka, to whom this did happen. That novel is a personal apology, and therefore it may be pointless to try to see broader intentions. Indeed, it is a *much* more personal story set against a background of a society ravaged by war, a society which demonstrated a cold lack of concern to its weaker members. In that sense, therefore, I thought of it not merely as an anti-war film, but a film critical of Japanese society's response to the war—almost all the adults in the film are shown to have little regard for the two orphans.
Even if you are not that into anime I would definitely recommend this film, a moving and challenging picture which forces the viewer to reappraise his or her own attitude to conflict.
Very interesting film for Kevin Costner. Not what I expected even after hearing about the film from other people. My verdict is still out. I liked it because it had a good story line, but for some reason I didn't like it...I can't exactly pinpoint why, but there is a certain unease with the whole thing.
Maybe it is because we have long reached a point in society where we are desensitized to these types of stories, where people are into killing and blood spatters everywhere. Is it because somewhere deep down in every single one of us there is a macabre fascination with killing people? I am inclined to think so, and I think that's why I don't like this movie. It reviles me at the same time it draws me in. Not because I am a killer, but because I am fascinated with the very story of one.
There Will Be Blood - My second viewing of this film and although I marvel at Daniel Day Lewis's performance the rest of the film leaves me unsatisfied. I really feel like they just scratched the surface of the main characters. Lewis's performance is so good you get a sense of what made his character the person he was, but the films narrative could have been tighter. When the movie was over I still didn't understand the man. Watchable for Lewis's performance and some interesting cinematography, but no classic.
There Will Be Blood - My second viewing of this film and although I marvel at Daniel Day Lewis's performance the rest of the film leaves me unsatisfied.
I thought he was very very good, but IMO his performance dramatically decreased in quality to a ridiculous degree at the end of the film.
"He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
30 Days of Night. Great premise. Great production design. Great guns, what a mess! The story was downright incoherent, leaving me to ask questions like, "Wait a minute--how did all those people manage to avoid the vampires early in the film and meet up in the exact same place?" and "How is it the vampires can smell blood but apparently can't smell it when people are hiding in an attic?" Oh, well, I should've known this would be a loser simply because it stars Josh Hartnett, whose idea of acting is to squint his eyes and purse his lips like he's sucking a lemon; and because Danny Huston is supposed to look evil while wearing Forest Gump's hairdo.
Very funny New Zealand movie with a geek-girl lusting after fellow oddball Jemaine Clement (from Flight of the Conchords). But he's more interested in plotting his revenge against the guy who used to bully him at school. Highly recommended for any fans of deadpan humour.
A really fun comedy which stars Rupert Everett, Colin Firth, Gemma Arterton and Rupert Everett. Gemma is great :x, and the producers will be happy to know that I give them my approval to hire her. :v (This may shock the departed Fish and cause her to accuse me of racism, but I think that Gemma looks great with short hair. ) )
The film is quite slow moving at first, to such an extent that I was considering walking out as it was so embarrassing, but it picked up its pace and became extremely entertaining. I do think that it's a little too post-modern, but really I had a great time. I would definitely recommend it. {[]
"He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
30 Days of Night. Great premise. Great production design. Great guns, what a mess! The story was downright incoherent, leaving me to ask questions like, "Wait a minute--how did all those people manage to avoid the vampires early in the film and meet up in the exact same place?" and "How is it the vampires can smell blood but apparently can't smell it when people are hiding in an attic?" Oh, well, I should've known this would be a loser simply because it stars Josh Hartnett, whose idea of acting is to squint his eyes and purse his lips like he's sucking a lemon; and because Danny Huston is supposed to look evil while wearing Forest Gump's hairdo.
That film is *awful*! I was dragged along to see it at the cinema last year without much hope—as you say, it stars Josh Hartnett, which never augurs well. Nevertheless, it did not come even close to meeting my fairly low expextations. The acting is atrocious. The plot makes no sense. The make-up/masks/whatever looked ridiculous. When in the cinema, at several points, the audience actually laughed, which can never be a good sign during what is ostensibly a horror film.
Emperor of the North
An interesting story about a battle of wills between hobo extraordinaire A No.1 (played expertly by Lee Marvin) and brutal railroadman Shack (Earnest Borgnine). Lee Marvin's character accepts the perilous challenge from fellow hobos to ride Borgnine's train all the way to its destination in Portland, at risk of life and limb. A fascinating look at the Depression-Era world of tramps, although the film was slightly tainted with the 70's music. All in all, a fun ride.
LoeffelholzThe United States, With LovePosts: 8,998Quartermasters
edited April 2008
"Out Of The Past"
Classic, seminal film noir from 1947, directed by Jacques Tourneur and starring a very young-looking Robert Mitchum as a shady P.I. hired to find the mistress (Jane Greer) of a wealthy mobster (an equally young-looking Kirk Douglas). As one suspects from the beginning, things aren't what they seem, betrayal is everywhere, and the plot twists and turns nicely along the way to a...
...suitably dark conclusion, as all the principals end up dead :v
Very solid performances from two of the era's very finest leading men---Douglas is charming, in a beguiling and dangerous way, as the baddie, and Mitchum is perfectly cast as the melancholy protagonist. Worth noting is Tourneur's excellent use of black and white, especially during many outdoor and brightly-sunlit vistas, when juxtaposed with the darkened rooms and patterned shadows so typically evocative of the genre.
Highly recommended for fans of Double Indemnity, etc B-)
This film was remade, to considerably lesser effect, in 1984 as Against All Odds, with Jeff Bridges, James Woods, the late Richard Widmark and the lovely Rachel Ward. That one had its moments...but, as is so often the case, it doesn't really measure up to the original.
Check out my Amazon author page!Mark Loeffelholz
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
An erotic drama by Pedro Almodóvar. A naive young buck stops by to harass his 'date' who has stood him up, she's a glamorous junkie. A gun goes off by mistake, the cops are called and it all unfolds from then on. To give away more would be wrong.
It seems to me that these non-UK/US films have a moral ambiguity that comes from not having joined forces against the Germans in two world wars, there's less a sense of earnest right v wrong. For much of this you don't quite see where your sympathies are meant to lie; there's isn't that safety net.
Quite engrossing, not much sex in it however! Still not one to watch with your folks.
A very good early film from director Jane Campion (best known for The Piano.) It's an extremely quirky family drama which boasts strong performances, a smart and ambigurous script and is a fascinating look at Campion's favourite themes pre-The Piano.
Campion is a feminist filmmaker, however her approach to feminism (and film) is IMO much more attractive than that of someone like Catherine Breillat (Romance and Anatomy of Hell), although one could of course debate just how progressive Campion is.
The other interesting thing about Campion is that she's a New Zealander, however like many other famous New Zealanders, Australians have adopted her as one of our own. ) Truthfully though, considering she was trained in Australia and her earlier films were funded in Australia, I think it's probably not all that unreasonable to claim her as an Aussie.
Anyway, Sweetie is a very impressive film, and I would recommend it to anybody, especially those who are fans of Campion's other work such as The Piano and Holy Smoke. {[]
"He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine. And when they start not smiling back—that’s an earthquake. and then you get yourself a couple of spots on your hat, and you’re finished. Nobody dast blame this man. A salesman is got to dream, boy. It comes with the territory." Death of a Salesman
I've joined lovefilm.com DVD rental service, and one of the advantages lies in renting out this kind of thing for 'free' rather than paying £50 for the series.
It's from the early 1970s, a historical documentary about Western Civilisation in Europe and what it entails, starting from the fall of the Roman Empire. First episode took us up to 1000, the claim being that civilisation got through by the skin of its teeth. First, Christianity retreated to the islands around Scotland during the Dark Ages following the fall of the Roman Empire. The new Barbarians let the old Roman houses go to rubble, they didn't pay for their upkeep, they didn't understand that world. He praises the Vikings for creating culture "they led to Colombus" because of their naval prowess, but they left little civilisation because they had no permanence, they lived mostly for today, or the next season. Charlemagne, the Frankish king, was another factor in shoring up civilisation. Around the 11th century you get gothic cathedrals etc...
Great stuff, though Clark's narrative put me in mind of Oliver Postgate off Bagpuss and The Clangers.
"This is where we leave you Mr Bond."
Roger Moore 1927-2017
RogueAgentSpeeding in the Tumbler...Posts: 3,676MI6 Agent
FRACTURE
It was my first time seeing this; it was passable and nothing more. I kept waiting for that tension to build and have me on the edge of my seat as to where it was going...
...problem is, I figured out the entire movie within the first twenty minutes or so. Hardly Hitchcock material but it's certainly not a total loss when there's nothing else to do.
Mrs. Man Face: "You wouldn't hit a lady? Would you?"
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice isUNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
One of the most miserable, bleak, depressing plays in existence. A BBC drama made for TV and initially broadcast in 1984, it deals with the issue of a nuclear exchange between NATO and the Warsaw Pact, which sees the UK devastated.
The story starts with two families in the industrial city of Sheffield, who's initial central characters Jimmy and Ruth have just got engaged due to an unplanned pregnancy. While the male lead is arguing with his family (raising a child in the economic depression) on the news in the background, and initially ignored by the characters, the Soviet Union has invaded Iran. While the story follows Jimmy and Ruth, the war in Iran is becoming unavoidable. US and Soviet warships in the Gulf exchange fire, and B-52s returning from attacking a Soviet airbase in Iran are wiped out with a tactical nuclear missile. The situation escalates and by now the fear of imminent war has gripped the UK. Protect & Survive, which all of us in the 80s will remember gave us handy advice on how to survive a nuclear attack (including labelling bodies) is now playing constantly on the TV. Non-essential phone lines are cut, petrol is rationed, motorways are reserved for military purposes and people have started panic buying. In the middle of an argument at a builders yard over wood for a bomb shelter, the 4 minute warning sounds. It gets bleaker from here.
The scenes of panic and fear are all too real as an EMP burst from the first blast, which explodes over the North Sea, knocks out communications. RAF Finningley, a NATO airbase outside Sheffield, is then bombed. The mushroom cloud erupting near the city builds the film into hysteria. One scene has a shell shocked lady staring at the mushroom cloud, and has wet herself through fright. The salvos continue and Sheffield, as a major industrial centre, is hit.
The effects of the immediate blast, the firestorm, the fallout, are explicit on structures and people.
As captions inform of the number of casualties, the UK is plunged back into the pre-industrial age and emotion becomes an alien concept as even our language breaks down.
Grim, grim, grim viewing. If you're not depressed before you start watching it, you most certainly will be afterward. It has only aired twice on UK television and only a limited run on VHS and DVD. But very much worth it. The idea of the growing tension in the Middle East being ignored and in the background at the start of the film is probably all too realistic as the characters are only interested in going about their lives.
Ah yes, I remember Threads. It went out around the same time as the US The Day After, which was generally derided. 1984 was all about nuclear war, wasn't it, with Frankie's Two Tribes nine weeks at number one, and Ultravox's Dancing with Tears in My Eyes and Nena's 99 Red Balloons. Even Macca got in on it with Pipes of Peace.
A shame Never Say Never Again, a year before, failed to tap into any of this paranoia, being just another nuclear weapon Bond film.
Comments
Great western starring Kurt Russell and Val Kilmer. I loved almost every minute of it and I now regard it as a modern classic about the old West. It seemed quite ludicrous how things worked back in Western times with the gun slinging and the random slaying of innocence. Thank goodness I wasn't born then.
My favorite scene has to be the ending bout between Doc Holliday and Johnny Ringo. Great lines and lots of tension.
Anyways, I highly suggest lovers of the western movies to watch this film, most of you probably have already anyways.
I give the film a 10/10. {[]
The score really was original.
The finale of The Wild Geese did it for me as a kid.
More recently it could be anything, but I'm getting maudlin in my old age. The Dunkirk scene in Atonement got to me too.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Classic 1950s Western starring John Wayne, often voted the best Western of all time. Very enjoyable and undeniably epic in scope. A band of Concho Indians raid a homestead, killing the folk and making off with two young daughters. A band of folk including Wayne go in search, but this gets whittled down and the quest goes from weeks into months. Over in the UK the story has a timely relevance with the abduction (presumed) of three year old Maddie McCann, still dominating headlines a year on.
Spielberg praises The Searchers as the best cinematic treatise on racism ever, but I must say I think he overstates it in deference to his forebears, and Wayne.
Some comcial 1950s Western touches like out of Oklahoma! and Seven Brides... take this away from Unforgiven territory.
Wayne is a bit annoying at first, keeps saying 'That'll be the day..." no doubt inspiring a young Mr Holly. His voice is just like Baloo the bear in The Jungle Book. Actually, I think Jack's portrayal of Colonel Jessop owes just a bit to Wayne's character, that take it or leave it, I'm right schtick.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Contrary to what some of my fellow AJB members here think, the Academy got it right. Screw the tearfests of some films... that's what the Lifetime Channel is for. :v
NCFOM is simply... Amazing.
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice is UNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
Rogue I will share my problem with NCFOM with you and allow you to comment.
Spoilers Ahead
Awaiting your rebuttal.
I'd be glad to share what I think in a PM, Barry.
You're trying to sabotage a modern day masterpiece...put the spoiler tags on, man.
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice is UNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
{[] Cheers, Dan. You see the light, my friend.
I don't think that it's as simple as Barry is trying to translate with such abandon...or more like SABOTAGE. Boy, is he going all Clinton on that one.
And BTW, I saw Attonement and it's really nothing special. There Will Be Blood, on the other hand, comes a close second to NCFOM...no Kleenex needed... 8-)
Even in my art classes, my students are all in agreement that NCFOM is a fantastic achievement and we RARELY agree on films in there.
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice is UNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
Tombstone takes a little while to get going, and Wyatt Earp's romance in the second half is a bit awkwardly presented, but it is a great film with some really nice visuals and ranks second only to Sergio Leone's westerns (which it draws quite a bit of inspiration from) for me. Everybody is great and Val Kilmer's performance as Doc Holiday deserved an Oscar nomination. It's not the most historically accurate pic, but it is entertaining stuff.
With all due respect, High, Jim Brown played for the Cleveland Browns. They drafted him out of Syracuse.
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice is UNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
An anime masterpiece from Studio Ghibli about the horrors of war. After the bombing of Kobe during WWII a boy Seita is left to look after his infant sister Setsuko as their father is away with the Imperial Japanese Navy. With nowhere else to go Seita takes Setsuko to their Aunt's house, who is a cruel woman and resentful of the allowance the two get as a result of their father's service. Following more insults and poor treatment from their Aunt, Seita takes Setsuko to an abandoned bomb shelter to stay. The two enjoy their life more, however grow increasingly desperate for food. Seita tries stealing food and removes all the money from his deceased mother's bank account. While there he learns of the surrender and realises his father is dead. I do not want to ruin the ending but I will say that it is deeply shocking and moving.
What makes this film so disturbingly effective is its simplicity and the fact that it is an animation. I very much doubt that the same atmosphere and emotion could have been conveyed in a live-action picture (which was recently made). The film itself is a devastating indictment on the futility and human consequences of war. The only problem with that well-meaning indictment is that by focusing solely on the plight of two Japanese orphans, and without mentioning at all the reason Japan is under attack, I can see why some would argue that the film is part of what seems an inability in some Japanese circles to face up to responsibility for the war and responsibility for some of the undeniable crimes that were committed by Japanese troops in occupied territories and against Allied POWs. Nevertheless, many Japanese civilians suffered horrendously as a result of the war, and I view this film as a crushing condemnation of war per se, rather than a way of absolving the Japanese of responsibility.
According to the extras, the director sees the film as illustrating the danger of pride over reason. Seita has a choice to stay with his Aunt and get on with it; ultimately due to his pride he decides to leave, with terrible consequences. It is based on an autobiographical novel by Nosaka, to whom this did happen. That novel is a personal apology, and therefore it may be pointless to try to see broader intentions. Indeed, it is a *much* more personal story set against a background of a society ravaged by war, a society which demonstrated a cold lack of concern to its weaker members. In that sense, therefore, I thought of it not merely as an anti-war film, but a film critical of Japanese society's response to the war—almost all the adults in the film are shown to have little regard for the two orphans.
Even if you are not that into anime I would definitely recommend this film, a moving and challenging picture which forces the viewer to reappraise his or her own attitude to conflict.
Very interesting film for Kevin Costner. Not what I expected even after hearing about the film from other people. My verdict is still out. I liked it because it had a good story line, but for some reason I didn't like it...I can't exactly pinpoint why, but there is a certain unease with the whole thing.
Maybe it is because we have long reached a point in society where we are desensitized to these types of stories, where people are into killing and blood spatters everywhere. Is it because somewhere deep down in every single one of us there is a macabre fascination with killing people? I am inclined to think so, and I think that's why I don't like this movie. It reviles me at the same time it draws me in. Not because I am a killer, but because I am fascinated with the very story of one.
Very funny New Zealand movie with a geek-girl lusting after fellow oddball Jemaine Clement (from Flight of the Conchords). But he's more interested in plotting his revenge against the guy who used to bully him at school. Highly recommended for any fans of deadpan humour.
A really fun comedy which stars Rupert Everett, Colin Firth, Gemma Arterton and Rupert Everett. Gemma is great :x, and the producers will be happy to know that I give them my approval to hire her. :v (This may shock the departed Fish and cause her to accuse me of racism, but I think that Gemma looks great with short hair.
The film is quite slow moving at first, to such an extent that I was considering walking out as it was so embarrassing, but it picked up its pace and became extremely entertaining.
An interesting story about a battle of wills between hobo extraordinaire A No.1 (played expertly by Lee Marvin) and brutal railroadman Shack (Earnest Borgnine). Lee Marvin's character accepts the perilous challenge from fellow hobos to ride Borgnine's train all the way to its destination in Portland, at risk of life and limb. A fascinating look at the Depression-Era world of tramps, although the film was slightly tainted with the 70's music. All in all, a fun ride.
Classic, seminal film noir from 1947, directed by Jacques Tourneur and starring a very young-looking Robert Mitchum as a shady P.I. hired to find the mistress (Jane Greer) of a wealthy mobster (an equally young-looking Kirk Douglas). As one suspects from the beginning, things aren't what they seem, betrayal is everywhere, and the plot twists and turns nicely along the way to a...
Very solid performances from two of the era's very finest leading men---Douglas is charming, in a beguiling and dangerous way, as the baddie, and Mitchum is perfectly cast as the melancholy protagonist. Worth noting is Tourneur's excellent use of black and white, especially during many outdoor and brightly-sunlit vistas, when juxtaposed with the darkened rooms and patterned shadows so typically evocative of the genre.
Highly recommended for fans of Double Indemnity, etc B-)
This film was remade, to considerably lesser effect, in 1984 as Against All Odds, with Jeff Bridges, James Woods, the late Richard Widmark and the lovely Rachel Ward. That one had its moments...but, as is so often the case, it doesn't really measure up to the original.
"I am not an entrant in the Shakespeare Stakes." - Ian Fleming
"Screw 'em." - Daniel Craig, The Best James Bond EverTM
An erotic drama by Pedro Almodóvar. A naive young buck stops by to harass his 'date' who has stood him up, she's a glamorous junkie. A gun goes off by mistake, the cops are called and it all unfolds from then on. To give away more would be wrong.
It seems to me that these non-UK/US films have a moral ambiguity that comes from not having joined forces against the Germans in two world wars, there's less a sense of earnest right v wrong. For much of this you don't quite see where your sympathies are meant to lie; there's isn't that safety net.
Quite engrossing, not much sex in it however! Still not one to watch with your folks.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
A very good early film from director Jane Campion (best known for The Piano.) It's an extremely quirky family drama which boasts strong performances, a smart and ambigurous script and is a fascinating look at Campion's favourite themes pre-The Piano.
Campion is a feminist filmmaker, however her approach to feminism (and film) is IMO much more attractive than that of someone like Catherine Breillat (Romance and Anatomy of Hell), although one could of course debate just how progressive Campion is.
The other interesting thing about Campion is that she's a New Zealander, however like many other famous New Zealanders, Australians have adopted her as one of our own.
Anyway, Sweetie is a very impressive film, and I would recommend it to anybody, especially those who are fans of Campion's other work such as The Piano and Holy Smoke. {[]
*runs off to Netflix to see if they have it*
I've joined lovefilm.com DVD rental service, and one of the advantages lies in renting out this kind of thing for 'free' rather than paying £50 for the series.
It's from the early 1970s, a historical documentary about Western Civilisation in Europe and what it entails, starting from the fall of the Roman Empire. First episode took us up to 1000, the claim being that civilisation got through by the skin of its teeth. First, Christianity retreated to the islands around Scotland during the Dark Ages following the fall of the Roman Empire. The new Barbarians let the old Roman houses go to rubble, they didn't pay for their upkeep, they didn't understand that world. He praises the Vikings for creating culture "they led to Colombus" because of their naval prowess, but they left little civilisation because they had no permanence, they lived mostly for today, or the next season. Charlemagne, the Frankish king, was another factor in shoring up civilisation. Around the 11th century you get gothic cathedrals etc...
Great stuff, though Clark's narrative put me in mind of Oliver Postgate off Bagpuss and The Clangers.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
It was my first time seeing this; it was passable and nothing more. I kept waiting for that tension to build and have me on the edge of my seat as to where it was going...
...problem is, I figured out the entire movie within the first twenty minutes or so. Hardly Hitchcock material but it's certainly not a total loss when there's nothing else to do.
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice is UNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
One of the most miserable, bleak, depressing plays in existence. A BBC drama made for TV and initially broadcast in 1984, it deals with the issue of a nuclear exchange between NATO and the Warsaw Pact, which sees the UK devastated.
The story starts with two families in the industrial city of Sheffield, who's initial central characters Jimmy and Ruth have just got engaged due to an unplanned pregnancy. While the male lead is arguing with his family (raising a child in the economic depression) on the news in the background, and initially ignored by the characters, the Soviet Union has invaded Iran. While the story follows Jimmy and Ruth, the war in Iran is becoming unavoidable. US and Soviet warships in the Gulf exchange fire, and B-52s returning from attacking a Soviet airbase in Iran are wiped out with a tactical nuclear missile. The situation escalates and by now the fear of imminent war has gripped the UK. Protect & Survive, which all of us in the 80s will remember gave us handy advice on how to survive a nuclear attack (including labelling bodies) is now playing constantly on the TV. Non-essential phone lines are cut, petrol is rationed, motorways are reserved for military purposes and people have started panic buying. In the middle of an argument at a builders yard over wood for a bomb shelter, the 4 minute warning sounds. It gets bleaker from here.
The scenes of panic and fear are all too real as an EMP burst from the first blast, which explodes over the North Sea, knocks out communications. RAF Finningley, a NATO airbase outside Sheffield, is then bombed. The mushroom cloud erupting near the city builds the film into hysteria. One scene has a shell shocked lady staring at the mushroom cloud, and has wet herself through fright. The salvos continue and Sheffield, as a major industrial centre, is hit.
The effects of the immediate blast, the firestorm, the fallout, are explicit on structures and people.
As captions inform of the number of casualties, the UK is plunged back into the pre-industrial age and emotion becomes an alien concept as even our language breaks down.
Grim, grim, grim viewing. If you're not depressed before you start watching it, you most certainly will be afterward. It has only aired twice on UK television and only a limited run on VHS and DVD. But very much worth it. The idea of the growing tension in the Middle East being ignored and in the background at the start of the film is probably all too realistic as the characters are only interested in going about their lives.
A shame Never Say Never Again, a year before, failed to tap into any of this paranoia, being just another nuclear weapon Bond film.
Roger Moore 1927-2017