Let's Talk Movies #34 - Kingsmen, Murder, Blade Runners and...IT!

[watchthis!!]

Fillibuster

I was going to say that I knew it started with an F but I wasn't sure of even that!

Rise is the only one I've been to. And I had a car accident on the way home

Are you (and your vehicle) okay?

Jean Arthur and Claude Rains most certainly did. In fact, Claude Rains was in Casablanca.

I knew of Claude Rains' name, but I couldn't list any of his movies (or describe him) unless I did some googling.

 

[MacMadame]

My car was side-swiped and got repaired. I was fine. It was ages ago that now it's just a funny story.

 

[Buzz]

Saw Justice League today and really enjoyed it but not something I would pay to see it twice. On the plus side all the actors did a great job. But on the down side the movie felt both rushed and at times like I was watching a video game.

ETA:
Stay till the very end of the credits.

 

[Aussie Willy]

Saw Justice League tonight. I enjoyed it. I think Gal Gadot does a great job as Wonder Woman (as she did in her own movie). Also Ezra Miller as Flash is very funny.

Buzz - unfortunately didn't stay until the end of the credits. I would have if I read your post before I went.

 

[Buzz]

Saw Justice League tonight. I enjoyed it. I think Gal Gadot does a great job as Wonder Woman (as she did in her own movie). Also Ezra Miller as Flash is very funny.

Buzz - unfortunately didn't stay until the end of the credits. I would have if I read your post before I went.

Here it what that final scene was about:

SPOILERS:
.
.
.
.
.

Spoiler

Lex Luthor escapes prison and is seen speaking to Deathstroke on a yacht about having a "league of our own"

 

[MacMadame]

Buzz - unfortunately didn't stay until the end of the credits. I would have if I read your post before I went.

Always stay until the end of a Marvel movie. Always. They always have a little scene after the credits.

 

[Buzz]

Naughty Naughty!

 

[escaflowne9282]

I have free tickets to Murder on the Orient Express (hurray for rewards points!). I already know the story, and I loved the '70s movie version, but my expectations aren't sky-high. Let's face it, Christie was NEVER known for depth of characterization; if the characters are shallow here, it probably ain't the screenwriter's fault. But I'm game to try it. I'll probably enjoy it more because I'm not expecting too much!

I never understood the love or Murder on the Orient Express as a book or movie. It was so acclaimed, but I actually thought it was one of Agatha Christie's weaker stories. The chatacters/suspects are preposterous. The ending is an anti-climax and Poirot does stupid things that make no sense and go against his character.

 

[Aussie Willy]

Always stay until the end of a Marvel movie. Always. They always have a little scene after the credits.

But it was a DC movie, not Marvel. However I have learnt for future

 

[Japanfan]

I watched Maudie, a little movie about the real life of Maud Dowley, a woman suffering from rheumatoid arthritis living in Canada in the 30's. It is mainly centered on Maud and the man she goes to work for as a maid played by Ethan Hawke. It's an intriguing story about the relationship between two outsiders and also about her artistic pursuit. There is sadness and the way he's acting towards her can be truly infuriating at time but it's mainly uplifting thanks to a great performance by Sally Hawkins. This woman had such an inner strength which totally contrasts with a frail physical appearance.

It was a sweet movie and the acting was good, but I also found it depressing. Maude deserved a better outlet for her art than that tiny shack in the the frozen woods (which she eventually got).

I also thought both characters came across as slightly mentally handicapped, in addition to being emotionally stunted.

 

[Buzz]

The expectations for Justice League at the box office is slipping lower and lower. My hope is that it can make up some ground with it's international earnings. They really shouldn't have cut so much out of the movie. It think that really hurt it in the end.
http://deadline.com/2017/11/justice...wer-thor-ragnarok-wonder-the-star-1202211094/

 

[Wyliefan]

I never understood the love or Murder on the Orient Express as a book or movie. It was so acclaimed, but I actually thought it was one of Agatha Christie's weaker stories. The chatacters/suspects are preposterous. The ending is an anti-climax and Poirot does stupid things that make no sense and go against his character.

Christie's characters are very often preposterous. Low bar.

 

[MacMadame]

But it was a DC movie, not Marvel. However I have learnt for future

Well, any comic book movie then.

 

[Wyliefan]

I knew of Claude Rains' name, but I couldn't list any of his movies (or describe him) unless I did some googling.

There was a time when you could hardly walk into a movie theater without encountering Claude Rains. Besides Mr. Smith and Casablanca, he was in The Invisible Man; The Wolf Man; The Adventures of Robin Hood; Now, Voyager; Lawrence of Arabia; and on and on and on. Wonderful actor.

As for Mr. Smith, it's one of my top three favorite movies. I never get tired of watching it.

 

[Aussie Willy]

If anyone is interested in Australia indie cinema, I saw a movie last night on SBS On Demand last night called Suburban Mayhem - http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0450506/?ref_=nv_sr_1

It is the story of Katrina who is a manipulative spoilt brat who is also has a young baby. She can get anyone to do anything she wants, particularly men. Not a nice person and rather neglectful parent. Her father is murdered so the story focuses on the lead up to that.

It actually won some awards here and the performance of Emily Barclay in the lead role is very good. I am still undecided about how it starts out but by the end I really liked it. For me it has a ring of truth about it as I do know a person very much like that and leaves a trail of destruction wherever she goes.

 

[cocotaffy]

Just watched a movie, Sing Street, I initially downloaded for the kids but ended up loving it myself. It happens in the mid 80's in Ireland and is about a kid who to charm a girl decides to form a band. Now the music will ring true to some of you depending of your age. I sure enjoyed the references and styling immensely. It's witty, a bit rude and what a coming of age story should be, very far away from cheesy and pompous. The acting is spot on and the music just enjoyable. Now amidst all those harassment stories of guys not knowing how to interact with women, this kid could surely teach them a lesson or two, masterclass in wooing.

 

[annie720]

Just got back from seeing Ladybird. Good, not great. I liked that it was set in a Catholic school environment.

 

[Buzz]

Justice League made $94m in the North American box office which is worse than even the lowest estimates, but is doing very well overseas where it made $185.5m. That is the lowest opening of any of the DCEU movies so far and JL reputedly cost as much as $300m to make.
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/h...office-setback-dcs-superhero-universe-1059826

 

[Jot the Dot Dot]

Can this thread be about oldies? I just received (and am watching) "Absence Of Malice", a rather brilliant film. No CGI (way before the day), no Schwarzenegger/Stallone action scenes, just a brilliant story, great acting (especially Newman) and a good (but not overtly preachy) moral story.

 

[PeterG]

Just finished watching The American (George Clooney in the lead role). It made me think of movies like Loving and Paterson in that they are all much subtler and moodier movies than what we're seeing today in film with superhero movies taking over the landscape. I loved the direction by Anton Corbijn (from the Netherlands), in the director's commentary he mentions that this was just the second movie he directed. I found the tone to be quite captivating, but it wouldn't surprise me to hear others complain that the movie was too slow. I also loved the cinematography and the lighting. Both are done just vibrantly enough to be noticed (appreciated), but not go so far as to outshine the movie as a whole. Clooney is good in an understated role and his two female co-stars (Irina Björklund and Thekla Reuten) are both strong. I had this DVD from the library for quite a while and I wasn't feeling a real pull to watch it, but now that I finally got around to seeing it, I'm glad I did. Was a nice surprise.

Can this thread be about oldies? I just received (and am watching) "Absence Of Malice", a rather brilliant film. No CGI (way before the day), no Schwarzenegger/Stallone action scenes, just a brilliant story, great acting (especially Newman) and a good (but not overtly preachy) moral story.

We recently discussed 1939's "Mr. Smith Goes To Washington". So we can talk about old movies or new ones like "Absence of Malice".

 

[smurfy]

I loved Sing Street- great movie

I saw Murder on the Orient Express. Entertaining, high production value. May not remember next week. The cast was good, I love Kenneth Branagh, but he was so obvious.

I also saw Marshall. good movie, also with Joshua Gad who was in Murder on the orient express. Chadwick Boseman is a very good actor. I like how they just focused on a small period of time with Thurgood Marshall.

 

[PeterG]

I watched Kong: Skull Island tonight. I thought it was much better than I expected. Was a bit more of a serious drama than I expected. Maybe modelled after the dark tone of Christopher Nolan's Batman movies somewhat?? It helped that Brie Larson and Tom Hiddleston were cast as the two leads, they acted the sh!# out of their roles. But I have to say that the real star of the movie was the CGI. Best I've ever seen. And the script was better than most monster movie type films. Oh, and Tom Hiddelston's long, lean, but muscular bod with his perfectly fitting clothing is definitely worthy of a mention.

 

[VGThuy]

The Independent Spirit Awards announced its nominees yesterday:

https://www.filmindependent.org/blog/drumroll-2018-film-independent-spirit-award-nominees/

Best Feature
“Call Me by Your Name”
"The Florida Project"
“Get Out”
“Lady Bird”
“The Rider”

Best Director
Jonas Carpignano, “A Ciambra”
Luca Guadagnino, “Call Me by Your Name”
Jordan Peele, “Get Out”
Sean Baker, “The Florida Project”
Benny and Josh Safdie, “Good Time”
Chloé Zhao, “The Rider”

Best First Feature:
“Columbus”
“Ingrid Goes West”
“Menashe”
“Oh Lucy”
“Patti Cake$”

Best Female Lead
Salma Hayek, “Beatriz at Dinner”
Frances McDormand, “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri”
Margot Robbie, “I, Tonya”
Saoirse Ronan, “Lady Bird”
Shinobu Terajima, “Oh Lucy”
Regina Williams, “Life and Nothing More”

Best Male Lead
Timothee Chalamet, “Call Me by Your Name”
Harris Dickinson, “Beach Rats”
James Franco, “The Disaster Artist”
Daniel Kaluuya, “Get Out”
Robert Pattinson, “Good Time”

Best Supporting Female:
Holly Hunter, “The Big Sick”
Allison Janney, “I, Tonya”
Laurie Metcalf, “Lady Bird”
Lois Smith, “Marjorie Prime”
Taliah Lennice Webster, “Good Time”

Best Supporting Male
Nnamdi Asomugha, “Crown Heights”
Armie Hammer, “Call Me by Your Name”
Barry Keoghan, “The Killing of a Sacred Deer”
Sam Rockwell, “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri”
Bennie Safdie, “Good Time”

Best Screenplay
“Lady Bird”
“The Lovers”
“Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri”
“Get Out”
“Beatriz at Dinner”

Best First Screenplay
“Donald Cried”
“The Big Sick”
“Women Who Kill”
“Columbus”
“Ingrid Goes West”

Best Cinematography
“The Killing of a Sacred Deer”
“Columbus”
“Beach Rats”
“Call Me by Your Name”
“The Rider”

Best Editing
“Good Time”
“Call Me by Your Name”
“The Rider”
“Get Out”
“I, Tonya”

John Cassavetes Award
“A Ghost Story”
“Dayveon”
“Life and Nothing More”
“Most Beautiful Island”
“The Transfiguration”

Robert Altman Award
“Mudbound”

Best Documentary
“The Departure”
“Faces Places”
“Last Men in Aleppo”
“Motherland”
“Quest”

Best International Film
“A Fantastic Woman”
“BPM”
“Lady Macbeth”
“I Am Not a Witch”
“Loveless”

Piaget Producers Award
Giulia Caruso & Ki Jin Kim
Ben LeClair
Summer Shelton

Annual Kiehl’s Someone to Watch Award
Amman Abassi, “Dayveon”
Justin Chon, “Gook”

Truer Than Fiction Award
Shevaun Mizrahi, “Distant Constellation”
Jonathan Olshefski, “Quest”
Jeff Unay, “Cage Figher”

Annual Bonnie Award
So Young Kim
Chloe Zhao
Lynn Shelton

 

[VGThuy]

Jessica Chastain just did a little skit on Jimmy Fallon about the audition process for women:

https://youtu.be/gnSox-Zi_hg

I know it's supposed to be funny, but she is really showing some skill here.

 

[watchthis!!]

Watched Machine Gun Preacher the other day. Gerard Butler is the preacher, who beings the movie as a very lost and violent soul getting out of prison and struggling until he embraces his wife's new-found faith. Then another battle begins as he learns about the suffering in an Africian region after a visitor to his church informs everyone what is happening in his country. Butler's character begins with building schools and living quarters for orphans but begins to take on the militia who are killing familes and taking their young sons to be used as child soldiers. It felt like the movie covered a lot of aspects of this man's story and endeavours...enough so that I wonder if this should have been a two or three part mini-series. And the movie sometimes feels like a pulp fiction dimestore novel on film, but at other times is very heartfelt and moving. So the direction is somewhat hit and miss, but overall the movie drew me in. But I guess that's kind of expected when one aspect of the movie is about orphaned children. I recommend this one, but don't set your expectations too high. Michael Shannon plays Butler's best friend in this movie, but his part isn't as large as Shannon's talents.

There was a time when you could hardly walk into a movie theater without encountering Claude Rains.

I'm not that old.

The Independent Spirit Awards announced its nominees yesterday:

https://www.filmindependent.org/blog/drumroll-2018-film-independent-spirit-award-nominees/

This is the time of year when I start feeling overwhelmed with these lists. There's so much on these lists that haven't been on my radar that I feel like I need to google for one or two days straight to be in the loop!

 

[Wyliefan]

I'm not that old.

Me neither. I'm just a Turner Classic Movies addict!

 

[Buzz]

Ant Man & The Wasp teaser. Sort off...
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uaEcQHIX17I

 

[PeterG]

Trailers For Movies Released 2017-11-24th
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLuI4-fSHhipTX2LOghF5g9zyZR6cyMIw-

I can't remember the last time there were so few movies being released in one week. I even reviewed my reference lists to see if some new ones had been added. As for this week's movies, I only added Darkest Hour to my list because I figure it's an important movie to see and because I've heard others talk about it. But the trailer itself doesn't look especially interesting. Same for Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story. Not a good trailer, but the premise sound fascinating, so I'm very much looking forward to seeing this one.


Nov. 22nd - The Man Who Invented Christmas (Wide) – Comedy drama with Dan Stevens, Christopher Plummer and Jonathan Pryce

Nov. 22nd – Coco (Wide) – Animated fantasy with Gael García Bernal, Benjamin Bratt and Edward James Olmos

Nov. 22nd - Darkest Hour (Limited) – Biographical drama with Gary Oldman, Ben Mendelsohn, Lily James and Kristin Scott Thomas

Nov. 24th - Call Me by Your Name (Limited) - Drama with Armie Hammer, Timothée Chalamet [Homeland, Interstellar] and Michael Stuhlbarg [Trumbo, Boardwalk Empire]

Nov. 24th - Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story (Limited) – Documentary. From imdb.com: “The world's most beautiful woman was also the secret inventor of secure Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and GPS communications, but her arresting looks stood in the way of her being given the credit she deserved--until now.”

Nov. 24th - What Happened in Vegas (Limited) – Documentary. From imdb.com: “Ramsey Denison investigates a terrifying pattern of police corruption and discovers that behind the shimmering surface of Las Vegas lies a police department with individuals willing to go to any lengths to cover up crimes.”

Nov. 24th - Eric Clapton: A Life in 12 Bars (Limited) – Documentary. From imdb.com: “A look at the life and work of guitarist Eric Clapton, told by those who have known him best, including BB King, Jimi Hendrix, and George Harrison.”

 

[VGThuy]

Today for Thanksgiving, I made my family watch 20th Century Women and I really loved it. It was a great time capsule but also shows how so much that was foreseeable happened and how many things didn’t really change.

 

[snoopy]

We saw roman j Israel for our thanksgiving evening. I did not like it - a downer of a movie. My once wanted to be a playwright bf loved it. He said everyone in his playwriting class would have been blown away by the development of Denzel's charcater. Which that was true - there was an in depth look at a complicated guy - but his character was a downer.