Talk About Movies: Part 4
Somehow threads merged, so here's part 4 of our ongoing movie discussion.
Drive Away Dolls Two lesbians accidentally get a "drive away" car that has some, um, unusual cargo wanted by some n'er do wells.
Meh.
Coen bros without the bros fell a little flat here. It just wasn't interesting.
Drive away Lesbians was god awful... and not in a Burn after Reading or A Serious Man kind of way, and not because they were 'Dolls'.
Happy Skynet Day to all who celebrate
apparently, it's also when Amelie became self aware
Lulz... that's pretty awesome.
I was reading through the thread from the beginning and came across this list. I've seen 82 of these. There's a few I did not see how great they were. For example, I didn't find Children of Paradise interesting at all. I didn't get The Rules of the Game when I saw it the first time. Now I think it's one of the greats.
I've caught up on a few of these the last couple years, in particular the two by Edward Yang. If you haven't see them, do. They are among the best, most humane films I've seen.
It o
Hay, I've watched at least part of 5 of those!
I've never seen any of the gremlins movies not into horror really at all but godamn now I really want to watch gremlins 2 lol.
the burbs was great obv.
Gremlins is kind of a dark comedy, and as noted, not even really that dark. The second one is darker, but neither one is really a horror movie.
Strange Darling, JT Mollner, 2024
Interesting, disturbing, and incredibly dark, Strange Darling is a "thriller in 6 parts," as it says on screen at the beginning of the movie.
Set in rural Oregon, the film focuses on a man and woman who engage in a one-night stand that devolves into a cat-and-mouse game of murder. It is divided into six narrative chapters arranged in nonlinear order, and presented as a dramatization of the pinnacle of a serial killer's years-long murder spree in the Western United States.
It stars Willa Fitzgerald and Kyle Gallner, with supporting turns by Barbara Hershey, Ed Begley, Jr., Steven Michael Quezada, and Madison Beatty.
It was shot on glorious 35mm, and, oddly, the cinematographer is well-known actor Giovanni Ribisi, who is also a producer on the film. This is Ribisi's first time as a DP, and he shows a true mastery of color, lighting, and composition.
Writer/director Mollner is a filmmaker I have never heard of before, but is also known for starring in the Las Vegas stage production of Tony n' Tina's Wedding, and he is heir to the Freakling Brothers haunted houses in Vegas. Weird.
This is bravura genre filmmaking by all involved, and it hinges on the two lead performances. Gallner is one helluva screen presence for someone I have also never heard of or seen before. He plays "The Demon," as he is credited on screen. He's charming, terrifying, and one good-looking dude.
But the movie belongs to Willa Fitzgerald, an actress you might have seen on TV in The House Of Usher or as the cute deputy in season 1 of Reacher. Her character is labeled, the Lady.
Fitzgerald gives a tour de force of a performance, one I hope is on a bunch of year-end best lists, as this might be the film performance of the year. Always liked seeing her in things, but I had no idea she could conjure up THIS kind of brilliance. She is at turns sexy, helpless, murderous, and sly, and spends most of the movie trying to get away from the Demon. She gets tied up, handcuffed, choked, beaten, shot multiple times, but all the way through she is in control...sort of.
I don't want to give anything away, as there is a nice twist in the middle of the movie, so I'd suggest going into this one blind. Be warned, however, it is a violent film with some incredibly dark sexual violence that might put off some (well, most) people.
Strangely, the movies I thought of after seeing this was The Texas Chainsaw Massacre mixed with Panos Cosmatos' visual flare. Great music and an over-the-top score, too.
One of the most original movies of the year.
Strange Darling reminded me of one of the slew of independent movies from the 1990s that came out after the success of Pulp Fiction. It definitely does not have a conventional style or feel to it.
I liked it but maybe not as much as a lot of others who have seen it seem to.
yeah, I appreciate the artistry of how it was made more than the story itself...
I was reading through the thread from the beginning and came across this list. I've seen 82 of these. There's a few I did not see how great they were. For example, I didn't find Children of Paradise interesting at all. I didn't get The Rules of the Game when I saw it the first time. Now I think it's one of the greats.
I've caught up on a few of these the last couple years, in particular the two by Edward Yang. If you haven't see them, do. They are among the best, most humane films I've seen.
It o
I can’t take this list seriously as they’ve somehow omitted The Great Beauty
Speaking of Coen-esque, I just saw Greedy People and aside from them shitting bed at the end, it was good. Had a ton more potential but it was an easy watch.
Oh yeah, no worries at all. I fully expected it to be awful and was pleasantly surprised at how much we enjoyed ourselves. Could definitely see it being a lesser experience watching elsewhere. Our viewing theatre was small and intimate, fried pickles were next level, and of course we were high af. Had a great audience too.
yeah that's probably a much better viewing experience than randomly deciding to watch it alone on a laptop completely sober during quarantine
Ive been hearing great things about Strange Darling... good to hear that it's interesting to many.
Watching The Final Countdown from 1980, with Kirk Douglass, Martin Sheen, Ron O'Neal, Katherine Ross, James Farantino, and Charles Durning.
About a modern aircraft carrier out of Pearl Harbor that gets sucked back in time to Dec. 6, 1944. Do they let history happen? Dol they take on the Japanese Fleet thats about to attack?
It's not a good movie, but it is a fun one and a film I loved when I was a teen.
Watching this right now for the first time in maybe 20 years. I frikken love this movie! I was still in the Navy when it came out and fresh off of an aircraft carrier. I saw it when it was first released when I was in the shipyards at Bremerton Wahington at the Bremerton Theater. All the planes in this movie have been retired which makes me feel real old. Also I had no recollection of Martin Sheen being in this movie? I definitely remember Kirk Douglas, Farantino and Ross.
There are a couple of references here about Russian Trawlers. When I was on a Carrier in the Mediterranean Sea we has a Russian Trawler 500 yards off of our port stern 100% of the time.
My mind is blown away by the fact that Willa Fitzgerald is the deputy from Reacher. Woah.
Also, Strange Darling is top 5 of the year for me.
And my mind is again blown away to see my birth city mentioned in the post above my last one. Wild!
Watching this right now for the first time in maybe 20 years. I frikken love this movie! I was still in the Navy when it came out and fresh off of an aircraft carrier. I saw it when it was first released when I was in the shipyards at Bremerton Wahington at the Bremerton Theater. All the planes in this movie have been retired which makes me feel real old. Also I had no recollection of Martin Sheen being in this movie? I definitely remember Kirk Douglas, Farantino and Ross.
There are a couple
from a mid century Naval perspective, I have very fond memories of The Bedford Incident
if folks like military films like Seven days in may or Fail Safe, give it a try. Ultimately it is an Anti-War film like those mentioned.
from a mid century Naval perspective, I have very fond memories of The Bedford Incident
if folks like military films like Seven days in may or Fail Safe, give it a try. Ultimately it is an Anti-War film like those mentioned.
Remarkable cast.
These Cold War films were really something. I'm also thinking of end-of-the- world films such as The World,The Flesh, and The Devil and On The Beach as more Cold War rather than sci-fi.
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Wally Cox FTW!
:p
Trap, 2024, M. Night Shamalamadingdong
The good - Josh Hartnett. He plays a good psycho.
The bad - everything else. Ludicrous plot that doesn't hold up. Too many coincidences and luck escapes. Saleka, our "final girl," is a good singer but a nothing actress.
Mildly diverting, but a solid "meh."
Disappointing, because by the social media reaction, you'd think this was unique and brilliant, and it is neither. Shame, because his last movie, Knock at the Cabin, was damn good.
The Verdict
Paul Newman stars as a down and out lawyer. The film is set in Boston, so naturally Newman is a hard drinking Irishman who has had only four cases in the past four years.
You've seen it before: washed up lawyer takes on huge law firm. I will leave it up to figure out who wins.
He takes on a malpractice case against a physician accused of incompetence. The hospital is run by the diocese of Boston, and it seems almost prescient in its portrayal of the Catholic Church of Boston.
Newman is great. His smallest gestures and looks convey so much about his character. Jack Warden plays his mentor. (Does Warden ever give a poor performance?) James Mason is sufficiently oily as the head of the big lae firm.
Finally, Charlotte Rampling is impossibly beautiful.
It may not be a great movie, but I'm a sucker for courtroom dramas. Impeccably directed by Stanley Kramer (note the choices for camera placement).
On Criterion.
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Love that movie. But wasn’t it directed by Sidney Lumet? I was just thinking about The Verdict while watching Dog Day Afternoon.
Yes, Sidney Lumet. I was watching another film by Kramer recently. [emoji1745]
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