And so it proved. I saw The Look of Love at the weekend. It's a second-rate Life and Death of Peter Sellers, which Coogan wanted to be in but they passed him over in favour of Geoffrey Rush. It has the same retro look, same time period, same theme of loser bloke making good and turning lothario, neglecting the wife and kids who accompanied him on his way up.
Geoffrey Raymond, the porn baron of Soho, a sort of more provincial, seedier Hugh Hefner, never had much of a personality and a quick look on google images reveals he was seriously balding in the mid 60s, so must have sported a hefty rug in his swinging years, a fact the film neglects to mention. Anyway, Coogan just pastes his familiar persona over the character, sort of narcisstic, insecure, a bit witty and sarcastic. It's alright but we've seen it before and it tells us nothing new. Otherwise we see his blue Rolls cruise around Soho intermittedly, obviously all shot on the same day but meant to take place over the decades (if he was so rich, didn't he ever buy a new model?), it reminded me of that film of a few years back Gangster No 1, all dressed up and nowhere to go.
Some of the female actresses like Anna Friel and Tamsin Egerton are very good, and Imogen Poots is affecting as Raymond's doomed daughter. But the soft porn scenes of tits and coke don't really turn you on, because porn as moved on since then, plus they don't contrast it with the starchy hornrimmed women on the day, all Margot Ledbetters and Margaret Thatchers.
The Lawnmower Man
Sci-fi with Jeff Fahey and a pre-Bond PB in which an experiment on a man of low intelligence makes him incredibly intelligent but also rather dangerous.
It's dated and a bit too long but still an interesting story that benefits from applying futuristic ideas to a very mundane environment.
“Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to a better understanding of ourselves.” - Carl Jung
Finally watched "The Anderson Tapes" today as it was on Film 4.
I quite enjoyed it ( then again I'd watch anything with Connery in it ).
a basic heist Movie from the early 70's, with Connery not wearing
his wig. A little slow by todays standards, but worth a watch. -{
"I've been informed that there ARE a couple of QAnon supporters who are fairly regular posters in AJB."
I watched OHMSS last night. My favourite Bond film of all time that gets better with every viewing :007)
Have you ever heard of the Emancipation Proclamation?"
" I don't listen to hip hop!"
Mr MartiniThat nice house in the sky.Posts: 2,707MI6 Agent
Saw Iron Man 3 earlier today. Throughly enjoyed it. Better than IM 2 by a long shot. Even enjoyed the Mandarin Twist. Wasn't really expecting that, but it was a fun scene. Even noticed a nod to James Bond in the movie. Of course, you have to sit all the way through the credits, and the scene after the credits. You see:
Tony Stark will return
Some people would complain even if you hang them with a new rope
Thoroughly Modern Millie, 1967 musical comedy set in 1920s, so a bit Gatsbyish.
Some great moments and jolly good fun, except at around 3 hours it goes on way too long for such fluff and while Julie Anderws, James Fox and Mary Tyler Moore are very good, there is an odd lack of real chemistry and fun of the sort we got in Some Like it Hot. It drags.
Of course, Bond fans will note John Gavin, standby for Diamonds are Forever, the nearly Bond, is in it as an American beefcake who goes 'swell' a lot. Okay, he's playing a stereotype but even then it makes you think that had he starred in DAF, you'd be feeling nostalgic for George Lazenby and I kid you not, he is very very bland. But maybe I'm being unfair.
Not many great songs in it either aside from the title theme, if I recall. Beatrice Lilley is good as the Slave Trade organiser, and their squeeky laundry trolley popped up many years later in the pts of GoldenEye.
Thoroughly Modern Millie, 1967 musical comedy set in 1920s, so a bit Gatsbyish.
Some great moments and jolly good fun, except at around 3 hours it goes on way too long for such fluff and while Julie Anderws, James Fox and Mary Tyler Moore are very good, there is an odd lack of real chemistry and fun of the sort we got in Some Like it Hot. It drags.
Of course, Bond fans will note John Gavin, standby for Diamonds are Forever, the nearly Bond, is in it as an American beefcake who goes 'swell' a lot. Okay, he's playing a stereotype but even then it makes you think that had he starred in DAF, you'd be feeling nostalgic for George Lazenby and I kid you not, he is very very bland. But maybe I'm being unfair.
Not many great songs in it either aside from the title theme, if I recall. Beatrice Lilley is good as the Slave Trade organiser, and their squeeky laundry trolley popped up many years later in the pts of GoldenEye.
The best part of the film for me is when she chucks the tab she is smoking into a fireworks factory
Have you ever heard of the Emancipation Proclamation?"
Watched Morgan Freemans GLORY the other day ,its about a black federal civil war regiment
put together to fight the confederate army , of course they all get the sh**y end of the stick
until their officer Mathew Broderick volounteers them for certain slaughter ,then every one likes them
but great film worth watching
Finally watched "The Anderson Tapes" today as it was on Film 4.
I quite enjoyed it ( then again I'd watch anything with Connery in it ).
a basic heist Movie from the early 70's, with Connery not wearing
his wig. A little slow by todays standards, but worth a watch. -{
I'm glad to see you finally caught up with one of my favorite non-Bond Connery films, TP. It's sort of amazing to me that The Anderson Tapes was made right around the same time as DAF. For me it was great seeing Connery playing a character other than Bond - not particularly sophisticated, clever or charming, but still tough and charismatic. I'm a sucker for a good caper movie, and I enjoyed the New York locations (my home town). I agree the movie is slow in a few parts, and it's a shame the role called for Connery to spend practically the entire last half of the film wearing a mask. Still, good solid entertainment and an example of Sir Sean's range as an actor.
It was one of those films I'd read about in Connery's film list but had never seen it.
It was amazing to see a young Christopher Walken, and fun to see Martin Balsam
( An actor I know best for westerns etc ) playing a very camp character.
IMHO Connery looked slimmer in The Anderson Tapes than DAF.
The ending I guess is a nod to "Watergate"
Now to see if I can stick with Zardoz, the whole way through, the next time it's on. )
"I've been informed that there ARE a couple of QAnon supporters who are fairly regular posters in AJB."
The Christopher Bray book on Connery is good, flicked through it in a discount store the other day. Some insightful stuff and similar tone to the Catching Bullets memoir.
The Jungle Book
Every scene a classic and great songs, great comedy.
Just caught "Drag me to hell " ( 2009 ) on channel 5, )
Funniest film I've seen in years, It certainly is not a Horror.
More like a scary movie Homage.
Worth a watch if you need a laugh. Could be based on an Old 50's
British horror "Night of the demon " as the story seems the same.
and has a Bond connection as Ken Adam did the production design on
the original film.
"I've been informed that there ARE a couple of QAnon supporters who are fairly regular posters in AJB."
Watched Tom Hanks, in Forrest Gump the other day, is it me
because when we watch his films, family members cry,
Green mile, Saving private Ryan , Toy story 3 , think about it
Watched "Snatch " again last night. Awesome film -{
keeps getting better with each viewing., and so funny. )
Should I call you Bullet? Tooth?
You can call me Susan if it makes you happy.
In the quiet words of the Virgin Mary... come again?
Listen, you fu*king fringe, if I throw a dog a bone, I don't want to know if it tastes good or not. You stop me again whilst I'm walking, and I'll cut your fu*king Jacobs off.
"I've been informed that there ARE a couple of QAnon supporters who are fairly regular posters in AJB."
Mini-reviews of another bunch that I saw recently:
Prometheus - Big fan of the first 2 alien films, and contrary to popular belief, I loved this too
Zoolander - The plot was stupid, but it made me laugh, therefore it did it's job
Medicine Man - Our good friend Sean Connery was great in this. I enjoyed it
Six Days Seven Nights - What an underrated film. Ford is brilliant in this, and the film was pure fun
Flightplan - Plotholes galore. But it was ok overall
Signs - It was ok until the guy got the baseball bat out...
The Mosquito Coast - Enetertaining enough for me, and a good performance by Ford
The Elephant Man - The most depressing film I have ever seen in my life
The Hautning (Original) - For an old film it wasn't bad at all
Witness - I love Harrison Ford, but I found this film overrated
The Sixth Sense - I was absolutely moved by this
Extraordinary Measures - Average
The Adventures Of Tintin - Absolutely loved it
The Poseiden Adventure - Great fun
Close Encounters Of The Third Kind - It was ok, but the build-up at the end was too long for me
Secret Window - Not bad, not bad
King Arthur - I enjoyed it for the most part but the final battle went on for too long
Frantic - Bloody excellent!
Random Hearts - Ok I guess but highly boring in parts
The Celestine Prophecy - Just odd really
Indie flick with Ryan Gosling set in New York state. After 50 mins I was ready to walk out; it's a dead-end story about a fairground motorbike rider who wants to get back with a one-night stand he'd had when in town the year before, but he doesn't have much cash to flash. I won't say more, but I'm glad I stayed as the film is a three-hander and goes in an unexpected direction around the one hour mark. It gets better as it goes on.
Imagine it's 1967, and you've avoided all the hoo-hah about James Bond these last few years, but you've just read Ian Fleming's Casino Royale and you found you quite enjoyed it. And what's this? There's a film adaptation of the novel coming out, starring David Niven, Orson Welles and Ursula Andress. You've heard it has a different tone to the novel, but it can't be that different can it? Well, Baz's Great Gatsby is about as similar in tone to the Fitzgerald novel as the dayglo farce of 1967 is to Fleming's novel.
Or, if you prefer, it's like comparing the mid 80s film Absolute Beginners to the classic Colin McInnes novel. Which is not to say they don't have their moments, and they're all music based: Herb Albert's tootling theme and Dusty's The Look of Love; Weller's Have You Ever Had it Blue? and Bowie's title track; I think it's Lana Del Ray's haunting song Will You Still Love Me When I'm No Longer Young and Beautiful that becomes earworm after Gatsby.
Otherwise, well, they give up early on; while the tone is an utter travesty they still seem to stick to details of the book almost unnecessarily and when they can't convey the moment they just have Tobey McGuire's character relate chunks of the book, like someone's gone through it with a magic marker highlighting the best bits of prose.
On the other hand, the sheer visual spectacle has stayed with me and I advise seeing it in 3D, it truly dazzles. Actually, I haven't seen anything quite like it. So swings and roundabouts I guess.
Dude, it's beer and pizza evening at the Prince Charles cinema, and a showing of Ghost World! Not seen it before, two lesbians before us in the row, can't be bad. Maybe Thora Birch and Scarlett Johansson will cop off in this, Scarlett's perky tits keep my interest man.... Hiccup.
Okay. No sex yet. Nothing really. The schoolgirls are outsiders, not like us jocks, they are all wiseass and superior, think Pendragon with low seratonin levels and you're nearly there... Where's the car chases man? Dude, what gives? You have Steve Buchemi as your leading man. This sucks!
Okay okay, I'll drop the jock act. Anyway, mildly amiable movie, couldn't like the two gals in it who seemed to roll their eyes at gormless stereotypes a lot, they did seem misanthropic. I think they got irked at US stereotypes that we just don't have over here in England, so some of it was wasted on me. It's a bit like a British film called Submarine, done much later. The Thora Birch character did seem to just hate some people for the sake of it.
Our Man Flint (1966), the first of the James Coburn efforts to give an American answer to Bond. The film has dated badly--it looks like a time capsule of 1960s styles, fashion, and thinking--and the overall tone is goofy, showing what a delicate balancing act the Bond films performed between adventure and humor. Still, what's fascinating is that the movie actually anticipates future Bonds. Let's see: the villains' headquarters is inside a volcano (YOLT), their plot is to cause worldwide destruction in order to allow a better breed of humans to thrive (TSWLM, MR), women are subjected to hypnosis (OHMSS--but, to be fair, that's in Fleming's novel, which came first), Flint's boss comes to Flint's apartment and is humiliated by the technological gadgets Flint displays (LALD), and Flint even stops his heart to fake death and make an escape (DAD). I haven't seen In Like Flint. . .I wonder how many more 007 adventures that one anticipates. . .
I have seen every Pixar film and with the exception of Cars 2, enjoyed all of them, Pixar’s latest release, Monster's University, is another creative success. Monster's University is a pre-quell to the previous Pixar hit, Monsters Inc. Mike Wazowski, voiced by Billy Crystal and James P. Sullivan voiced by John Goodman, are first year students at Monsters University. When they first meet they cannot stand each other, but they are forced to join forces when a series of incidents has them both on the verge of being booted from school. Along with a few other fraternity members they have to win the "Scare Games" to stay in school.
I laughed out loud numerous times during the film and was surprised by a couple plot twists. I had very good time watching Monsters University and highly recommend it.
Note - I saw the 3D version, although there were a few scenes where the 3D was effectively used, I don't believe 3D added to my enjoyment of the film.
Comments
Geoffrey Raymond, the porn baron of Soho, a sort of more provincial, seedier Hugh Hefner, never had much of a personality and a quick look on google images reveals he was seriously balding in the mid 60s, so must have sported a hefty rug in his swinging years, a fact the film neglects to mention. Anyway, Coogan just pastes his familiar persona over the character, sort of narcisstic, insecure, a bit witty and sarcastic. It's alright but we've seen it before and it tells us nothing new. Otherwise we see his blue Rolls cruise around Soho intermittedly, obviously all shot on the same day but meant to take place over the decades (if he was so rich, didn't he ever buy a new model?), it reminded me of that film of a few years back Gangster No 1, all dressed up and nowhere to go.
Some of the female actresses like Anna Friel and Tamsin Egerton are very good, and Imogen Poots is affecting as Raymond's doomed daughter. But the soft porn scenes of tits and coke don't really turn you on, because porn as moved on since then, plus they don't contrast it with the starchy hornrimmed women on the day, all Margot Ledbetters and Margaret Thatchers.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
for JON COFFEE ,sadly the actor Duncan who played him has also died,
Sci-fi with Jeff Fahey and a pre-Bond PB in which an experiment on a man of low intelligence makes him incredibly intelligent but also rather dangerous.
It's dated and a bit too long but still an interesting story that benefits from applying futuristic ideas to a very mundane environment.
I quite enjoyed it ( then again I'd watch anything with Connery in it ).
a basic heist Movie from the early 70's, with Connery not wearing
his wig. A little slow by todays standards, but worth a watch. -{
" I don't listen to hip hop!"
Magnificent re-creation of the events but the impact was somewhat muted by the PG-rated violence
Watched Dr No on DVD last Sunday
Some great moments and jolly good fun, except at around 3 hours it goes on way too long for such fluff and while Julie Anderws, James Fox and Mary Tyler Moore are very good, there is an odd lack of real chemistry and fun of the sort we got in Some Like it Hot. It drags.
Of course, Bond fans will note John Gavin, standby for Diamonds are Forever, the nearly Bond, is in it as an American beefcake who goes 'swell' a lot. Okay, he's playing a stereotype but even then it makes you think that had he starred in DAF, you'd be feeling nostalgic for George Lazenby and I kid you not, he is very very bland. But maybe I'm being unfair.
Not many great songs in it either aside from the title theme, if I recall. Beatrice Lilley is good as the Slave Trade organiser, and their squeeky laundry trolley popped up many years later in the pts of GoldenEye.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
The best part of the film for me is when she chucks the tab she is smoking into a fireworks factory
" I don't listen to hip hop!"
put together to fight the confederate army , of course they all get the sh**y end of the stick
until their officer Mathew Broderick volounteers them for certain slaughter ,then every one likes them
but great film worth watching
I'm glad to see you finally caught up with one of my favorite non-Bond Connery films, TP. It's sort of amazing to me that The Anderson Tapes was made right around the same time as DAF. For me it was great seeing Connery playing a character other than Bond - not particularly sophisticated, clever or charming, but still tough and charismatic. I'm a sucker for a good caper movie, and I enjoyed the New York locations (my home town). I agree the movie is slow in a few parts, and it's a shame the role called for Connery to spend practically the entire last half of the film wearing a mask. Still, good solid entertainment and an example of Sir Sean's range as an actor.
It was amazing to see a young Christopher Walken, and fun to see Martin Balsam
( An actor I know best for westerns etc ) playing a very camp character.
IMHO Connery looked slimmer in The Anderson Tapes than DAF.
The ending I guess is a nod to "Watergate"
Now to see if I can stick with Zardoz, the whole way through, the next time it's on.
The Jungle Book
Every scene a classic and great songs, great comedy.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Funniest film I've seen in years, It certainly is not a Horror.
More like a scary movie Homage.
Worth a watch if you need a laugh. Could be based on an Old 50's
British horror "Night of the demon " as the story seems the same.
and has a Bond connection as Ken Adam did the production design on
the original film.
because when we watch his films, family members cry,
Green mile, Saving private Ryan , Toy story 3 , think about it
keeps getting better with each viewing., and so funny.
Should I call you Bullet? Tooth?
You can call me Susan if it makes you happy.
In the quiet words of the Virgin Mary... come again?
Listen, you fu*king fringe, if I throw a dog a bone, I don't want to know if it tastes good or not. You stop me again whilst I'm walking, and I'll cut your fu*king Jacobs off.
Prometheus - Big fan of the first 2 alien films, and contrary to popular belief, I loved this too
Zoolander - The plot was stupid, but it made me laugh, therefore it did it's job
Medicine Man - Our good friend Sean Connery was great in this. I enjoyed it
Six Days Seven Nights - What an underrated film. Ford is brilliant in this, and the film was pure fun
Flightplan - Plotholes galore. But it was ok overall
Signs - It was ok until the guy got the baseball bat out...
The Mosquito Coast - Enetertaining enough for me, and a good performance by Ford
The Elephant Man - The most depressing film I have ever seen in my life
The Hautning (Original) - For an old film it wasn't bad at all
Witness - I love Harrison Ford, but I found this film overrated
The Sixth Sense - I was absolutely moved by this
Extraordinary Measures - Average
The Adventures Of Tintin - Absolutely loved it
The Poseiden Adventure - Great fun
Close Encounters Of The Third Kind - It was ok, but the build-up at the end was too long for me
Secret Window - Not bad, not bad
King Arthur - I enjoyed it for the most part but the final battle went on for too long
Frantic - Bloody excellent!
Random Hearts - Ok I guess but highly boring in parts
The Celestine Prophecy - Just odd really
1 - Moore, 2 - Dalton, 3 - Craig, 4 - Connery, 5 - Brosnan, 6 - Lazenby
Indie flick with Ryan Gosling set in New York state. After 50 mins I was ready to walk out; it's a dead-end story about a fairground motorbike rider who wants to get back with a one-night stand he'd had when in town the year before, but he doesn't have much cash to flash. I won't say more, but I'm glad I stayed as the film is a three-hander and goes in an unexpected direction around the one hour mark. It gets better as it goes on.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
version
standing across the hills holding machine guns etc.
is pure 60's.
Well, what can you say?
Imagine it's 1967, and you've avoided all the hoo-hah about James Bond these last few years, but you've just read Ian Fleming's Casino Royale and you found you quite enjoyed it. And what's this? There's a film adaptation of the novel coming out, starring David Niven, Orson Welles and Ursula Andress. You've heard it has a different tone to the novel, but it can't be that different can it? Well, Baz's Great Gatsby is about as similar in tone to the Fitzgerald novel as the dayglo farce of 1967 is to Fleming's novel.
Or, if you prefer, it's like comparing the mid 80s film Absolute Beginners to the classic Colin McInnes novel. Which is not to say they don't have their moments, and they're all music based: Herb Albert's tootling theme and Dusty's The Look of Love; Weller's Have You Ever Had it Blue? and Bowie's title track; I think it's Lana Del Ray's haunting song Will You Still Love Me When I'm No Longer Young and Beautiful that becomes earworm after Gatsby.
Otherwise, well, they give up early on; while the tone is an utter travesty they still seem to stick to details of the book almost unnecessarily and when they can't convey the moment they just have Tobey McGuire's character relate chunks of the book, like someone's gone through it with a magic marker highlighting the best bits of prose.
On the other hand, the sheer visual spectacle has stayed with me and I advise seeing it in 3D, it truly dazzles. Actually, I haven't seen anything quite like it. So swings and roundabouts I guess.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Okay. No sex yet. Nothing really. The schoolgirls are outsiders, not like us jocks, they are all wiseass and superior, think Pendragon with low seratonin levels
Okay okay, I'll drop the jock act. Anyway, mildly amiable movie, couldn't like the two gals in it who seemed to roll their eyes at gormless stereotypes a lot, they did seem misanthropic. I think they got irked at US stereotypes that we just don't have over here in England, so some of it was wasted on me. It's a bit like a British film called Submarine, done much later. The Thora Birch character did seem to just hate some people for the sake of it.
Roger Moore 1927-2017
Man from UNCLE movies.
I have seen every Pixar film and with the exception of Cars 2, enjoyed all of them, Pixar’s latest release, Monster's University, is another creative success. Monster's University is a pre-quell to the previous Pixar hit, Monsters Inc. Mike Wazowski, voiced by Billy Crystal and James P. Sullivan voiced by John Goodman, are first year students at Monsters University. When they first meet they cannot stand each other, but they are forced to join forces when a series of incidents has them both on the verge of being booted from school. Along with a few other fraternity members they have to win the "Scare Games" to stay in school.
I laughed out loud numerous times during the film and was surprised by a couple plot twists. I had very good time watching Monsters University and highly recommend it.
Note - I saw the 3D version, although there were a few scenes where the 3D was effectively used, I don't believe 3D added to my enjoyment of the film.