Let's Talk Movies #33: Star Wars: Jabba Rising...Captain America Trumps China...and MORE!

[Vash01]

Who else is tired of Pirates of the Caribbean movies? Raise hand!

I never cared for them. Saw just the first one and that was enough for me.

Same with MI (I probably saw only number 3)

I hate these 'series'. They belong on TV, not in movie theatres. One sequel should be enough, and some movies (like Taken! For example) don't deserve even one sequel.

 

[watchthis!!]

Last night I watched a good movie called "Blackway". I don't remember it making an impression on the box office charts, which is a shame because it includes some good performances, an interesting story and some beautiful scenery to take in (depending on your tastes). Blackway is a 2016 thriller starring Anthony Hopkins, Julia Stiles and Ray Liotta. They make a great combination and are obviously up to the task of making a good movie. Although at imdb.com, the movie rates a low 5.2. Worse, at rotten tomatoes, only 29% of the audience liked it. I wonder if people nowadays expect too many explosions and car chases and a big plot twist every few minutes. I mean, it has some of most of this, but it's a movie that does its job instead of trying too hard. Stiles plays a woman who moves back to the home of her childhood after her mother passes away. Liotta plays the local bad guy who takes an interest in her, but comes off too strong and gets spurned. Trouble ensues! Hopkins plays one of two men who help her deal with this guy who is now harassing her. As good as the cast is, I think that Alexander Ludwig steals the movie. His role as a gentle giant with an unspecified mental handicap is for the most part understated, but Ludwig makes the most of the role in a quietly flashy way, if that makes sense! You might know Ludwig from the first Hunger Games movie (he played Cato), Lone Survivor (with Mark Wahlberg) and the tv show Vikings. Blackway also co-stars Hal Holbrook and Lochlyn Munro.

Trailer for Blackway: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MUUX8y0LHw

 

[MacMadame]

July 28th - The Emoji Movie (Wide) – Animated with T.J. Miller, James Corden, Anna Faris, Maya Rudolph, Steven Wright, Jennifer Coolidge, Patrick Stewart, Christina Aguilera, Sofia Vergara, Rachael Ray, Sean Hayes and Jeffrey Ross

Okay, who in their right mind thought this movie was a good idea?

I'm actually interested in a few of these this week including:

July 28th - An Inconvenient Sequel (Limited) – Documentary.

Didn't see the first one but I'm more interested now.

July 26th - Rumble: The Indians who Rocked the World (Limited) – Documentary. From imdb.com: “he role of Native Americans in contemporary music history-featuring some of the greatest music stars of our time-exposes a critical missing chapter, revealing how indigenous musicians helped shape the soundtracks of our lives and, through their contributions, influenced popular culture.”

That sounds completely fascinating to me. I bet I can get Mr. Mac to go or we'll at least stream it later.

July 28th - Romeo is Bleeding (Limited) – Documentatry. From imdb.com: “Donte Clark's poetic voice was honed on the violent street corners of a struggling city. Yet rather than succumb to the pressures of Richmond, CA, Clark uses his artistic perspective to help save his city from itself.”

I live somewhat near here and it's been interesting to see the city evolve. The first time I went there was about 11 years ago to shoot a gymnastics competition and I was afraid to leave my car on the street. It's much safer now.

 

[Seerek]

July 28th - Menashe (Limited) – Drama, new cast. From imdb.com: “Within Brooklyn's ultra-orthodox Jewish community, a widower battles for custody of his son. A tender drama performed entirely in Yiddish, the film intimately explores the nature of faith and the price of parenthood.”

I saw this earlier in the month, and I have to give Josh Weinstein a lot of credit in taking on such an ambitious project, especially when you consider that the orthodox lead actor (Menashe Lustig) would have been completely new to filmmaking, not to mention unaware as to movies in general. The movie itself has an arc of predictability when it comes to examining challenges to faith, but Weinstein is still able to strikingly contrast the growing divergence of cosmopolitan 21st century urban life with the air-tight community of New Square in Brooklyn.

 

[Vash01]

I think we have a 34 in the movie thread.