Movies you've just watched

[Lord British]

Last Tango In Paris - 1972 - Bernardo Bertolucci - Italy/France



God, what to say about this one? Though its not an "X-Rated" movie by todays standards it's still pretty shocking and gross. Some of Brando's lines are hilarious/ridiculous. The short of it is Brando plays a man whose wife just committed suicide, and starts what he intends to be a sex-only relationship with a 19-yr old girl. Things get weird way before he asks her to stick her fingers up his butt while he talks about dead pigs farting in her face. I'll leave it there. Watched on Prime using MGM+ free trial

[vol.2]

Last Tango In Paris - 1972 - Bernardo Bertolucci - Italy/France

I'll never look at butter the same way again

[Lord British]

Last Tango In Paris - 1972 - Bernardo Bertolucci - Italy/France

I'll never look at butter the same way again

[Lord British]

Apu Sansar (World Of Apu) - 1959 - Satyajit Ray (India)



Finally wrapped up the Apu Trilogy with this last installment, and it's just as devastating as the first two. Won't say much about the this or the first two because I don't want to spoil anything, but once again this one is beautifully made and it comes highly recommended; one of the best movie trilogies for certain. Watched on Max

[Lord British]

La Belle et la Bête (Beauty and the Beast) - 1946 - Jean Cocteau (France)



I thought this was superb. Love the atmosphere of the Beast's castle. There's a certain grace to this movie. Four bags of popcorn and a coke. Watched on Max

[Lord British]

Civil War - 2024 - Alex Garland



It's a fine movie if you watch it the right way. If you approach it like a zombie apocalypse or disaster movie and let yourself enjoy the ride, it's fine. If you're looking for something more introspective, then pass. Does it have its popcorn moments? Sure. But I like how they don't give you much explanation of what's going on with only minimal hints of backstory; it's for the viewer to piece together. I wouldn't normally see a film like this (and this is my first Alex Garland movie), but the premise was enough for me to go out a grab some popcorn. It's dumb fun, but you could go dumber. Kudos: There's about four needle drops in the movie, one of them from Silver Apples and two from Suicide, and they're used well. Saw in theater

[PC Engine Fan X!]

Sure, I've seen the trailer for Alex Garland's Civil War...he's done some sci-fi films in the past including Annihilation (circa 2018) and Ex-Machina (circa 2014) -- both are quite good in terms of movie plot and overall pacing to move the stories forward.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[NYN]

Mean Girls

First. Enticed by an article about the meme relevance 20 years after inception, like "Why are you so obsessed with me?", I passed that until now for not being into Lohan, however brief that career was. It's fun and charming in a cheeky fem way, like Hughes teen-fun, and can get a little nasty, kinda. The movie's Necronomicon Ex-Mortis is called The Burn Book, that is cute for being redundant, when there is all the social networking now. In the great teen tradition the tunes are all-righty, in a not-eye-rolling way, what was hip in the day and some retro thrown in. The gal got going to Blondie's One Way or Another, and I got happy with the credits rolling to Idol's Dancing With Myself covered by The Donnas. Whooooo! Now go fetch.

[Arino]

I haven't watched it yet, but I am looking forward to this one and it's already in my possession https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eiATifcnSqI

[hazys]

Some I semi-recently enjoyed:

Eye of God (1997): Quietly devastating indie small-town melodrama, directed by a guy who did little else of note beyond a strange modern-times Othello adaptation. Perfect casting and editing, maximum-impact scene structure. The acting may be a little "TV movie" for some but it appeals to me. Ruined my evening in a good way.

Silvia Prieto (1999): Kooky and charming Argentinean indie comedy. There are parallels with Aki Kaurismaki in how socially-maladapted characters deal with bizarre people and situations. A light magical-realist touch to it as well. The dialogue really shines here, with so many appealing or confounding quirks and turns. Not sappy at all.

Paper Moon (1973): I thought this movie would be too cute with the B&W conceit and the Great Depression setting and the Little Rascals-esque repartee, but it's impossible not to be won over by it. Peak Americana. Ryan O'Neal acting opposite his own daughter added a lot of beauty and warmth to the central relationship.

Evil Dead Trap (1988): Really out-there gore/exploitation Japanese cult classic. Extremely giallo-influenced, stylish, and sexy/sexually violent. Feels like it was a major influence on comics and games of the time. On its face it doesn't seem like anything too special, but months afterwards I can't stop thinking about it.

Luna Papa (1999): Probably the only Tajikistani movie I've seen. A sort of fabulistic story about a pregnant teen and her family trying to make do in the chaotic post-Soviet period. Turns to flights of fancy and generally operates on a not-quite-realistic level, to very charming effect. The ending is especially funny and moving. A hidden gem.

Three recently-released movies I also enjoyed were Perfect Days, Fallen Leaves and The Holdovers. All recommended. EDIT: Oh yeah, and The Zone of Interest. But that one you really need to see in the theater, mostly for the sound.

[Some-Mist]

watched irma la douce and paris texas this week.

I love seeing the jack lemmon and shirley maclaine chemistry in the apartment, so I gave this billy wilder flick a shot. for the first half of the movie this was a perfect one, and the 2nd half kinda flew off the rails which isn't necessarily a bad thing but it went overboard on the antics and I absolutely hated the ending. still, jack lemmon is such a pro at visual comedy and I really need to see more of the stuff he's in (I think I've only seen 12 angry men).

I haven't seen anything by wim wender so paris texas was my first foray. really wanted to see harry dean stanton as a lead and man did he kill it. I went in blind without reading anything about it and just knowing it's highly regarded and recommended, and it was the perfect way to go into it. my s/o was thinking it was going to go a lynch route, especially based on how odd the first 30 minutes play out, but it subverted both of our expectations. I was readying to get this one on criterion collection after watching it, but I'm honestly not sure how many times I'm going to be able to rewatch it despite how great it was.

I think I'm going to go with the american friend next, but that might not be until we see tommy boy on 35mm next week

[GaijinPunch]

but that might not be until we see tommy boy on 35mm next week

Do they let you rip bong hits in the theater?

[neorichieb1971]

Civil war -

Under the circumstances of the setting of the movie, my friend couldn't stop laughing at the photographers running into the line of fire with Nikon cameras to get a shot. I do agree that the movie took this a bit far.

I found it tense in places and there were a few places I jumped due to an unexpected gunshot. its a 6.5/10 from me due to the filler. There is a middle section with lots of talking, trying on clothes etc.


Bee Keeper -

Statham becomes Rambo. Another far fetched movie but one that entertains. If you liked Shwarzeneggers "Commando" from the 80's you'll probably like this. Although its probably Stathams take on a John Wick movie. Some of the bad guys a tad bit colourful and the action is fast and furious although a bit OTT. Remember when the Queen has a bad off spring, it needs to be taken out.

7/10.

[Stevens]

Kentucky Fried Movie was absolutely ridiculous.

I bought this on VHS about 10 years ago for .50

AND THE CAPITAL OF NEBRASKA IS LINCOLN!

Monkey Man

Oh man I really wanted to like this. It does so many things right for an action movie: Good setting, characters make you like them/hate them accordingly, and well choreographed fight scenes. You can tell they now how to orchestrate a great fight scene.

Sadly though you won't get to enjoy them. Movie gets a giant floppy dicked F for camera work.

It takes a good 40 minutes of build up to get the the first sequence and right away I knew what I was in for: Awesome close ups of the characters faces while the cameraman - who has presumably just ingested 12 cups of coffee, an 8 ball, or both jitters and shakes to hell and back. It was so bad I had to close my eyes at some points. There are maybe 15 - 20 seconds where the camera is actually pulled back and steadied and at these times it is obvious they know what they're doing. The rest is just head scratchingly bad. I just can't figure it out.

Could have been special. Honestly - pass.

If you're looking for an action fix I suggest The Man From Nowhere, The Killer, or Kill Boksoon instead (or honestly all three). Awesome trio of Korean action movies that get it right.

[neorichieb1971]

Rebel Moon 2 - Netflix

Another movie where hand to hand combat is fought in the middle of crossfire of a gazzillion bullets. Up to this point I found Rebel Moon to be cartoonish in its delivery. The stuntmen are doing backflips before our hero has touched them. I know this story was supposedly a Star Wars spin off originally, but to have another death star type sequence that follows the originals steps quite closely is a bizarre choice. I mean your watching it, and it plays out the same so its hardly suspense. If your going to copy something, do it better. The bad guys have a tank that blows the shit out of a building, but the next building has a main character in it, so it switches from missiles to machine guns. All this plot armour.

Saying that its ok, but its just ok. I wouldn't want to watch it ever again.

5/10.

[ChurchOfSolipsism]

Talking about Alex Garland...

Men - 8/10
Yeah, maybe a bit too complacent in places, although it's absolutely beautiful to look at. Great performances, dialogue (which was incredibly authentic in many scenes), sound design, gore effects, takes its time with setting things up. Garland isn't afraid to do whatever the fuck he wants, which makes his films very refreshing to me. Can't wait to see Civil War.

[ChurchOfSolipsism]

Kentucky Fried Movie was absolutely ridiculous.

I bought this on VHS about 10 years ago for .50

AND THE CAPITAL OF NEBRASKA IS LINCOLN!

Do I have to have seen this as a kid to get it? I watched this for the first time a year ago, and it was kinda shocking to see how boring, unfunny and uninspired many sketches were, particularly when you compare them to the other output of Zucker/ Zucker/ Abrahams.

[emphatic]

Civil War - 3/5

Not my thing, I don't really enjoy being at the edge of my seat so many times throughout the film without an emotional release from the tension building up, if that makes any sense. I did, however get surprised when De La appeared on the soundtrack. It provided much needed comfort for me. I don't see any obvious point of it - if there's a message in there, it was not clear to me, except that war is horrible.

[Some-Mist]

but that might not be until we see tommy boy on 35mm next week

Do they let you rip bong hits in the theater?

not only, but you also get chicken wings and a t-bone steak along with it
it's at the theater I'm sure you've visited many times during your chicago stay, and I'm sure it's gonna be around 85% capacity which is like 600 people

[ChurchOfSolipsism]

Possessor - 7/10
Tons of neat visual ideas, plenty of realistic gore, great acting, great handmade effects, but still left me strangely cold. Felt a bit hollow since it felt like it wasn't about much more than what was shown.

[NYN]

You were not shocked by it? You were not relieved it was not about endless love and happy-sappy family? Sounds like a "meh" to me.
Just surprised to hear that. Feeling that this is one of the few where one catches up with humanity, though being science-fiction.
Well, to each their own reaction.

[vol.2]

Interesting. I didn't much like Infinity Pool; It seriously bored me, so I kind of gave up hope that Brandon would have any decent movies. Maybe I should try again.

[GaijinPunch]

not only, but you also get chicken wings and a t-bone steak along with it
it's at the theater I'm sure you've visited many times during your chicago stay, and I'm sure it's gonna be around 85% capacity which is like 600 people

Gotta be Chicago Theater, right? I've been many times. Highlight was probably the Withnail and I anniversary (30th), complete w/ Q&A w/ Richard S. Grant just after. He just so happened to be doing a play in Chicago at the time. It sold out. What a riot.

When I first moved to Chicago I missed Trainspotting which was given the same treatment. Punched myself in the balls for days. Didn't even know Irvine Welsh famously lives in Lakeview.

[GaijinPunch]

oops

[Lord British]

not only, but you also get chicken wings and a t-bone steak along with it
it's at the theater I'm sure you've visited many times during your chicago stay, and I'm sure it's gonna be around 85% capacity which is like 600 people

Gotta be Chicago Theater, right? I've been many times. Highlight was probably the Withnail and I anniversary (30th), complete w/ Q&A w/ Richard S. Grant just after. He just so happened to be doing a play in Chicago at the time. It sold out. What a riot.

When I first moved to Chicago I missed Trainspotting which was given the same treatment. Punched myself in the balls for days. Didn't even know Irvine Welsh famously lives in Lakeview.

Don't you mean The Music Box on Southport?

[Some-Mist]

yeah, I thought GP posted about it a couple times while he was a resident, I might be misremembering!

[Lord British]

yeah, I thought GP posted about it a couple times while he was a resident, I might be misremembering!

https://musicboxtheatre.com/films-and-events/tommy-boy

[Some-Mist]

yep
I probably see around 6-10 films there per year and thought I remember GP also going to see some flicks there

[GaijinPunch]

Some of my memorable moments at The Music Box (sorry, Chicago Theater... wtf... I used to live right by there. How did I mix those two up?)

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me
Die Hard
The Thing: 70mm (but well color shifted, sadly)
Monokehime
Akira (dubbed - walked out 5 minutes in and got my money back actually, as they advertised it subtitled)
Mulholland Drive
Withnail and I
Blade Runner
The Handmaid

Gotta be some others. Great lineups there. There's a few theaters like that here in San Francisco. I go to The Roxie semi regularly.

[neorichieb1971]

Some of my memorable moments at The Music Box (sorry, Chicago Theater... wtf... I used to live right by there. How did I mix those two up?)


Withnail and I


Gotta be some others. Great lineups there. There's a few theaters like that here in San Francisco. I go to The Roxie semi regularly.

Withnail and I has quite a lot of fans. "Candlewell carrot" gets mentioned a lot when you mention the name. Some great reactions to the halucinations.