Talk About Movies: Part 4
Somehow threads merged, so here's part 4 of our ongoing movie discussion.
I’m struggling to think of any that are at least halfway decent.
Walk The Line, I guess?
There are many not only decent, but excellent : think Bird, Love and Mercy, Through the Mist, La Vie en Rose, Control, Sid & Nancy, Amadeus, Immortal Beloved, Rocketman, Born to be Blue, A Complete Unknown, Better Man, 24 Hour Party People, The Pianist to name a few and to leave out the more marginal halfway decent ones!!!
I’m excited for the Lorne doc. I know SNL isn’t what it used to be but it has played a big part in my life and I love learning more about it. Just have to admire how much he’s fought for his vision after all these years
I’m struggling to think of any that are at least halfway decent.
Walk The Line, I guess?
The Buddy Holly Story with Gary Busey was pretty good.
That makes a lot of sense considering we don't agree on pretty much any film.
Thats cool. Movies and music are two of my favorites things. Combine them? I'm all in! Lots of good ones already mentioned. I'll add Amadeus, La Bamba, Great Ball of Fire, Coal Miners Daughter, Elvis, Whats Love Got to do with It just off the top of my head. And probably more but those with the other previously mentioned (Love and Mercy, Buddy Holly Story, Walk the Line and The Doors) are my favorites.
Undertone - A couple of young podcasters (horror/spooky genre) receive a mysterious email with 10 audio file attachments. the email is a bit spooky, and the audio files they listen to for their podcast gradually build up with intensity. There are a lot of issues with this one, it's a bit dull in spots, their podcast production would be a nightmare to edit, they record episodes
Let me just say with this one that despite its very low budget I'm not sure the pay off is there at the end. The movie has great sound though.
Glengarry Glen Ross (1992)
Nothing much actually happens in this film about a bunch of sleazy salesmen trying to sell dodgy real estate, but I kinda liked it anyway, due to the performances from the all star cast, with Jack Lemon being particularly good and a great cameo from Alec Baldwin.
Let me just say with this one that despite its very low budget I'm not sure the pay off is there at the end. The movie has great sound though.
No arguments here for sure. I was so sucked in for the ride that I forgave it for it's shortcomings. Feel like a re-write from a different writer could have smoothed out those rough edges.
Go - Felt like I needed a nostalgic hit straight to my veins and this one delivered. Not as good as I remember, but the cast is a fun hang and the soundtrack is top notch! No Doubt as Gwen Stefani was hitting her peak popularity, Massive Attack, Fatboy Slim. A turn of the century soundtrack for the ages! Also features a fun cameo from Melissa McCarthy years before she arrived on the scene with Bridesmaids.
Michael getting absolutely panned brings me great joy. Please kill these musician biopics for the foreseeable future.
$100m domestic opening and 97% audience score on RT, so I don't think they'll be going anywhere any time soon lol.
Critics' biggest issue is that there was too much music and not enough kiddy diddling apparently.
Undertone - A couple of young podcasters (horror/spooky genre) receive a mysterious email with 10 audio file attachments. the email is a bit spooky, and the audio files they listen to for their podcast gradually build up with intensity. There are a lot of issues with this one, it's a bit dull in spots, their podcast production would be a nightmare to edit, they record episodes
My GF and I are still talking about this one a week later. Masterfully acted, directed, and edited. It's like an audio Skinamarink lol.
And we also noticed some weird inconsistencies, like the podcast they only record a minute at a time, the hospice nurse we never actually see, her doctor calling at 3am. All stuff that's, while not impossible, is quite improbable.
And then we realized that it's intentional. Things are supposed to feel...awry. Weird. Not quite right. Because I'm pretty sure we're supposed to
Spoiler
think that our main character is not all there in the head. She feels massive guilt for the death of her mother - and make no mistake - she's dead and no longer actually in the house.
Incredibly well-made movie...and it literally takes place in 2, maybe 3 rooms, and that's it. Never heard of the filmmaker. Canadian.
Highly recommend.
My GF and I are still talking about this one a week later. Masterfully acted, directed, and edited. It's like an audio Skinamarink lol. And we also noticed some weird inconsistencies, like the podcast they only record a minute at a time, the hospice nurse we never actually see, her doctor calling at 3am. All stuff that's, while not impossible, is quite improbable. And then we r
Dude that's a wicked read. I like it. I'd love to revisit again soon. There were also a handful of moments that were unnerving AF.
Spoiler
There was a moment when the daughter closed the closet door, which also had a mirror. And in the reflection, for about 0.35 seconds you can see her mother STANDING IN THE BED. she turns around and mom is lying there. It didn't dawn on me that the mother has been gone the whole time.
also a couple of moments where you could see the silhouette of what appears to be a misty ghost in the background. And I LOVE the set design. The drapes make it feel like the mother is looming over her the entire time. It pays off in the end when one of those background shapes becomes "real."
What a hell of a film. Really struck close to home because my mother in-law was in hospice for about 3-4 weeks? She was given less than a week but she fought. That feeling of dread still hits us all these years later.
My GF and I are still talking about this one a week later. Masterfully acted, directed, and edited. It's like an audio Skinamarink lol. And we also noticed some weird inconsistencies, like the podcast they only record a minute at a time, the hospice nurse we never actually see, her doctor calling at 3am. All stuff that's, while not impossible, is quite improbable. And then we r
I mean I get the time difference as I understand Justin (the other host of the podcast) is doing it from London but still everything that is going on in Evy's life you would think that she would pick a different time to do the podcast rather than at 3am (or Justin be the one to realise he should do it at a different time as he does go on in the podcast to criticise her for her drinking so he knows she has issues beyond what was happening in the house).
It’s April 28, 2026! Errol Flynn’s movie debut in 1933 was based on what famous historical event that occurred exactly 237 years ago?
I'm considering teaching a special Topics film class on movies about ghosts.
I'm considering films such as A Ghost Story, Personal Shopper, The Ghost and Mrs.Muir (or Topper). I want at least one comedy, and the two I named above work. I'm also thinking of Ugetsu.
Can anyone suggest it other films of a more serious nature?
By the way, if you haven't seen Personal Shopper, do so.
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Listening to the StarTalk podcast, just heard this bit of trivia which I found fun.
Did not remember this. IIRC, Moonraker was my first Bond film.
The Haunting, The Innocents, Kuroneko, 6th Sense, The Changeling
Also there's that section in Dead of Night with the 2 golfers that's a fun little treat.
Also also on the lighter side, there's a fun 40s one called The Uninvited, and Beetlejuice.
I haven't seen that for years. It's a great one.
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The Others
Poltergeist
The Entity
The Conjuring & also part 2
The Sixth Sense
House on Haunted Hill, either original or remake.
Comedic/light:
The Frighteners
Ghostbusters
Possibly High Spirits, but I haven't seen that one since I was a kid.
All rewatches this week
Homicide (1991)
Jewish homicide detective Joe Montegna gets involved in an underground Zionist group while investigating the homicide of an elderly shop owner in this lacklustre thriller. I hadn't seen this its release and didn't think much of it at the time and was hoping it would improve on a revisit, but I still found it pretty dull.
Carlito's Way (1993)
Not a patch on Scarface imho, but still quite good, with a great performance from Sean Penn and a surprisingly decent one from John Leguizamo
Cruising (1980)
Pacino goes undercover in the underground Gay leather/S&M scene when trying to flush out a serial killer, in this frustratingly ambiguous, but nonetheless rather fascinating film from William Friedkin, that I personally like, but would totally get why others wouldn't. Plenty of familiar faces too, with Paul Sorvino, James Remar, Powers Booth, Joe Spinell, Mie Starr and Al Bundy himself Ed 'O'Neill all popping up as well as Karen Allen who looks really cute in leather gear.
Southern Comfort (1981)
A bunch of Louisiana National Guardsmen using only blanks on a training exercise are besieged by murderous Cajuns in this solid survival thriller, but I felt it could have been better or at least tighter. Still well worth a look though.
OG ANOES
The Haunting, The Innocents, Kuroneko, 6th Sense, The Changeling
Also there's that section in Dead of Night with the 2 golfers that's a fun little treat.
Also also on the lighter side, there's a fun 40s one called The Uninvited, and Beetlejuice.
I'm thinking of either The Others or The Innocents. I think Kurenko might work, but if I stick with Ugetsu, two Japanese films might be too much. Kurenko might appeal more to students though.
I love Dead of Night.
The Conjuring is based on a house in RI. A couple years ago went to see two podcasters in Brooklyn who were doing a show about ghosts and featured a film with one member of the Conjuring family.
This woman was clearly nuts, which explains she was the only one from the family interviewed.
FWIW, I don't believe in ghosts.
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Love Southern Comfort (and Personal Shopper)
Rewatched Thief recently, also a really great early 80s movie, from same year actually.
Other recent watches: Relay by David Mackenzie whose work I tend to enjoy when he does genre movies (Hell or High Water, Starred Up), and yup i liked this as well, not as great as those two but p good. Marty Supreme was really good. And unfortunately i watched Mercy with Chris Pratt while playing poker, the worst movie I’ve seen in quite a while.
They Will Kill You (2026)
An ex con gets a job as a maid in an exclusive apartment complex only to find it's run by a Satanic cult, who wish to sacrifice her, in this frantically paced film, that comes across like a combination of The Raid and Kill Bill (complete with Kill Bill style arterial spray and titled chapters).
This should have been right up my alley, and I quite liked the director's 2018 film Why Don't You Just Die! but I gotta say I quite frankly found this offering annoying af. Tries way to hard to be cool, with an annoyingly indestructible protagonist and a relentless irritating soundtrack/score for nearly the entirety of the film, as well as frequent slo-mo visual gimmicks. Has one or two nice gore scenes but that's about it.
Love Southern Comfort (and Personal Shopper)Rewatched Thief recently, also a really great early 80s movie, from same year actually. Other recent watches: Relay by David Mackenzie whose work I tend to enjoy when he does genre movies (Hell or High Water, Starred Up), and yup i liked this as well, not as great as those two but p good. Marty Supreme was really good. And unfortunate
I loved Southern Comfort as a kid and still liked on a revisit, but as an adult, found it kinda flawed in some respects. I shamefully still haven't seen Thief yet and really need to rectify that.
