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Post by bixaorellana on Mar 12, 2009 17:36:04 GMT
I watched Soul Men last night. Not surprisingly, the sound track was good, although as a Sam and Dave fan, I never found it raucous enough.
Actually, the movie itself was somehow subdued, even though the humor was overly broad and even slapsticky. The script was barely there, relying on mo' fu' to carry it along, and the pacing was simply slow.
It was the performances that made it worth watching at all, with Bernie Mac giving his all (maybe too much of his all, as eye-popping and -rolling can get distracting and tedious) and Samuel L. Jackson doing all he could with the material at hand.
Samuel L. Jackson is a fascinating actor, and he really made the movie for me, pulling depth and human interest from a skimpy script. He can dance, too!
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Post by bixaorellana on Mar 13, 2009 19:12:43 GMT
Not a very recent viewing, but I highly recommend Irina Palm for its great performances by the two main actors. Very off-the-wall premise, but I enjoyed the movie. Here it is online.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 13, 2009 20:31:10 GMT
Irina Palm was wonderful. Marianne Faithfull is always interesting, but it was also fascinating to see Kevin Bishop (who played her son) doing something different from his roles in "The Spanish Apartment" or the sequel "Russian Dolls."
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Post by Jazz on Mar 13, 2009 21:49:19 GMT
I thought Irina Palm was wonderful. Gyro, I watched Shortcuts. It is a great film, there is no one quite like Altman for ensemble casting that is so pitch perfect.
Last night was The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. I had been avoiding it. I think it was brilliant and it is one of the rare films that I can say, I will never be quite the same person after watching this.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 13, 2009 21:49:39 GMT
Viewed APALOOSA with Ed Harris,a western. Doesn't work.
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Post by bixaorellana on Mar 13, 2009 21:58:28 GMT
Ha, Jazz ~~ I was very tempted to avoid it as well! Did you see my review in Reply #2? I'm curious as to whether you agree.
Casimira ~~ you mean Appaloosa simply doesn't hold together, is boring .... ?
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Post by Deleted on Mar 13, 2009 21:59:23 GMT
I liked Appaloosa very much. No accounting for taste!
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Post by Deleted on Mar 14, 2009 23:22:22 GMT
Re: Appaloosa,I was very psyched to see this movie as was Mr.C.,we missed it on the big screen for whatever reason. Anyway,perhaps "doesn't work" was a poor choice of words. I love Ed Harris and I think he did a fine job both in acting and directing. The cast was great,good screenplay,location. The first half of the movie I was riveted and then it just lost it for me from there. The male bonding theme was too reminiscent of other films,the love triangle, I got bored with it.
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Post by bixaorellana on Mar 18, 2009 3:15:27 GMT
Last night I finally saw a movie I'd wanted to see since it came out: Catch Me If You Can. Wow -- I was really not disappointed! From the opening credits which perfectly capture the feel of the early sixties, and the cultural bits throughout the movie that sustain that illusion, the movie itself delivers. There is some great casting throughout, including all bit players, and Christopher Walken, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Tom Hanks really shine. I watched the first option in the link above, the one with nine (!) parts. A little tedious to do it that way, but it had good reproduction and loaded quickly. Click on the small screen to be taken to the full-screenable version.
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Aussielover
member
Offline
Yo ho! Yo ho! A pirate's life for me.
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Post by Aussielover on Mar 19, 2009 11:12:33 GMT
I re-watched Forrest Gump on DVD. I had forgotten how well it was done. OK - I know the story well so nothing was a surprise, but it touches me every time I see it.
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Post by bixaorellana on Mar 19, 2009 16:43:05 GMT
Last night I watched Easy Virtue, which is a perfect choice if you're looking for light entertainment that's beautifully presented.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 19, 2009 18:09:34 GMT
Hah, I watched 'French Idol' ("Nouvelle Star") where we are still in the primary elimination phase, although our nasty jury is composed of 4 rather than 3 people (this shocked my brother and sister-in-law when they saw it last year).
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Post by gringalais on Mar 20, 2009 16:47:55 GMT
Last night I finally saw a movie I'd wanted to see since it came out: Catch Me If You Can. Wow -- I was really not disappointed! From the opening credits which perfectly capture the feel of the early sixties, and the cultural bits throughout the movie that sustain that illusion, the movie itself delivers. There is some great casting throughout, including all bit players, and Christopher Walken, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Tom Hanks really shine. I quite liked that one too.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 20, 2009 21:57:35 GMT
Christopher Walken can do no wrong. I rewatched him in The Comfort Of Strangers directed by Paul Schrader. Set in Venice with co=stars Helen Mirren, Rupert Everrett and the late Natasha Richardson. He is so menacing in this film. It's very creepy,S&M,stalking,all against the back drop of hidden alleyways and dark corners of Venice.
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Post by bixaorellana on Mar 30, 2009 4:33:41 GMT
I just finished watching Easy Rider. Can't believe that movie came out forty years ago (June 1969). It's held up really well. I saw it on the big screen when it was released, and must have seen it at least once since then, but it was new all over again. Here is a link, if anyone wants to see it online: tvshack.net/movies/Easy_Rider__1969_/. The resolution is pretty bad at first, but gets better. (That link worked perfectly for me, but just in case you have trouble: www.ovguide.com/movies_tv/easy_rider.htm.)
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Post by Deleted on Apr 1, 2009 2:34:30 GMT
I just watched a video of my knee surgery that my Dr. gave me. Very cool .
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Post by Jazz on Apr 5, 2009 2:16:38 GMT
The Yacoubian Building. I just watched this for the second time and I love it. The second look was enhanced by reading the Cairo threads here...I felt like I stepped into Kerouac's photos and into the streets and came to know the people of Cairo. This film works on many levels and it is rich, seamy, tawdry, and violent... yet beautiful, sensual and loving.
Essentially, it takes place in the Yacoubian , an Art Deco building constructed in the 30's and named after the wealthy man who had it built. For many years wealthy Egyptians lived here and on the roof were small storage units, perhaps 4 m Square. In the 50's and 60's, the wealthy tenants began to move to the affluent suburbs and poor immigrants from the countryside moved into the 'storage units' on the roof, creating rooftops slums and a bizarre 'upstairs-downstairs' society. (look at K's rooftop photos in his Cairo thread). The story is about six Egyptians, some are wealthy and live in the gorgeous apartments, and some live a totally different life on the roof. The interweaving of their lives is complex and we feel that we glimpse Cairo society and its' politics. The interior and exterior shots of the building, a nightclub, a mosque, and the streets are fascinating. However, this film isn't just a 'pretty face'. With the sensuality and beauty, come terrorism, rape, the violent face of gay life, the violence of religion, and forced abortion.
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Post by bixaorellana on Apr 5, 2009 4:47:59 GMT
Aaarrrgh ~ the more you all talk about that movie, the more I want to see it. One day I'll get my hands on a copy. And now for the good news ~ I finally found a good, clear resolution copy of Arizona Dream online! Yesssss ~~ www.watch-movies-links.net/movies/arizona_dream/You will want the third option. The downside is that it's Megavideo, which means you'll get cut off at 72 minutes and have to wait 54 minutes to watch anymore. 72 minutes happens 5:08 minutes into the 2nd half. Go take yourself a nice intermission, then come back & see the rest. Read about it here or just go watch it. This is a wonderful movie!
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Post by tillystar on Apr 7, 2009 13:40:24 GMT
I have had REC for a while, since it was discussed on the european cinema thread, but Mr Star is a big scaredy pants and wouldn't watch it with me.
THis afternoon I decided to watch it while Lil star had her nap. I spent the first hour thinking it was "OK" but not scary, just very bloody. Hmmm, got to the final "penthouse" scene and I don't think I have ever been so scared sitting in broad daylight!
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Post by Deleted on Apr 7, 2009 13:41:55 GMT
Ha! Yes, it does get to you after awhile.
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Post by tillystar on Apr 14, 2009 12:42:08 GMT
Watched Sunshine over the weekend. Its a sci-fi film, another film I watched under duress and wasn't expecting to like. Again I liked it.maybe I ned to try more films think I won't enjoy...
It had beautiful images of space and the sun but the thing that I really loved was the soundtrack, it was really beautiful but creepy and haunting; it seemed to really play a huge part in setting the scene and expressing the mix of fear and awe that the characters seem to feel about the sun. Not something I'd listen to at home but played a huge part in my enjoyment of the film.
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Post by Jazz on Apr 14, 2009 21:30:27 GMT
Once Were Warriors is powerful film about an urban family in New Zealand who are descended from Maori warriors. Do not watch it if you are sensitive to violence. I was totally unprepared for this film. The one scene where the abusive father beats up his wife is the most terrifying and realistic that I have ever seen. (I would have shot him.) It is about how one family deals with domestic abuse, alcoholism and poverty. For some reason, I thought it would explore the decline of a once proud Maori culture, but in a gentler way. This film is not gentle, but it is great.
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Post by Jazz on Apr 14, 2009 21:40:37 GMT
Grand Illusion, 1937, directed by Jean Renoir (son of the painter, Pierre-Auguste Renoir). I've watched this several times and I love it. I think it's one of the greatest war films ever made. It's also one of the finest anti-war films. The main characters are of different nationalities and all are dealt with in a humane and small scale fashion. There are almost no 'war' scenes. It is loving and shot beautifully. I think it's a masterpiece.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2009 12:41:09 GMT
A dear friend gave me the gift of a 2 disc set of Kieslowki's The Decalogue. I am familiar with his work Three Colors:Blue/White/Red but don't know this work. Anyone out there like,dislike? Thanks
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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2009 19:23:22 GMT
Once Were Warriors is powerful film about an urban family in New Zealand who are descended from Maori warriors. Do not watch it if you are sensitive to violence. I was totally unprepared for this film. The one scene where the abusive father beats up his wife is the most terrifying and realistic that I have ever seen. (I would have shot him.) It is about how one family deals with domestic abuse, alcoholism and poverty. For some reason, I thought it would explore the decline of a once proud Maori culture, but in a gentler way. This film is not gentle, but it is great. I was so impressed by Once Were Warriors that I dragged a friend to see it a few days later. He was hiding his face during the beating because he couldn't take it. However, he agreed that it was a masterwork of cinema. It is a massive shame that the director was dragged to Hollywood to make shitty movies after that.
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Post by Jazz on Apr 16, 2009 12:12:09 GMT
A dear friend gave me the gift of a 2 disc set of Kieslowki's The Decalogue. I am familiar with his work Three Colors:Blue/White/Red but don't know this work. Anyone out there like,dislike? Thanks I watched the first five, which was all that my local video store carried. They are very good, but powerful and melancholic. They are not light fare and I had to be in a specific mood to watch each of them.
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Post by tillystar on Apr 27, 2009 15:26:02 GMT
Last night I watched The Boy with the Striped Pyjamas. This is the story of two boys who becomes friends through the fence of a concentration camp is utterly heart breaking. I felt drained out afterwards. The effect of the contrast of the boys innocence against the horrors in the world around them was very moving. The child actors are amazing, especially "The Boy with the Striped Pyjamas" he makes you want to reach out and grab him close to you
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Post by tillystar on Apr 27, 2009 15:31:14 GMT
Oh Jazz I just saw your comments about this film in the too painful thread.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 27, 2009 21:54:59 GMT
Ugh, I just watched Taken, which was on TV tonight. Besides the fact that it is a piece of shit, Liam Neeson has perhaps the most appalling fake American accent I have ever heard, and it was really hard to beat Jude Law for that award.
I am really ashamed that Taken is the highest grossing French-made film of all time.
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Post by Jazz on Apr 27, 2009 21:56:19 GMT
Tilly, I will never forget the ending. This the first time that I have seen this in a film about the camps. The White Countess is a film that I confused with another and finally I watched it last night. It is a period piece set in late 1930's Shanghai and in true James Ivory style, it was beautiful...but restrained, and not the story I expected. What surprised me (and explained the restraint) was that it was based on a novel by Kazuo Ishiguro who wrote Remains of the Day. Earlier yesterday I had read a good interview with him in the Guardian. www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/apr/27/kazuo-ishiguro-interview-booksIn this film, Ralph Fiennes is a blind man (the result of a recent accident), and The White Countess is both the late realization of his dreams, his bar and sanctuary, and a real person, a white russian immigrant who hosts his club. It takes place in the few years before the Japanese invade Shanghai.
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