Let's Talk Movies #36 - 2020 - Yep it is a new decade

PeterG said:
I watched The Power Of The Dog this past week. This morning I started watching the DVD extras. Then as I prepared to post about the movie, I googled whether Jane Campion was a gay filmmaker. Or not. (She was married to man once, they divorced in 2001. Stopped searching, so that's all I know.)

I found some reviews of The Power Of The Dog that represented my distaste (disgust?) for this movie.

Then I did a search here to see what others has posted about this movie. I couldn't keep reading. I feel sick.

So I'm not going to talk about the movie other than to say... Straight People. Tell your own f*ing stories. Leave gay stories to gay people to tell. And please, for the love of God, keep your homophobic bull**, however artful, to your ****ing selves.
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As someone who enjoyed the film, your feelings are valid. I just want to say the film stuck close to the novel, which was written by a gay man whose wife knew he was gay. The book was inspired by the author's real-life experiences that was similar to the character of Peter, even though obviously it wasn't fully biographical considering what happens in the movie. The Cumberbatch character and even "Bronco Henry" were inspired by people in the author's life.
 
clairecloutier said:
We watched Ford vs. Ferrari. For those who haven't seen it, it's a movie about car racing in the 1960s, with Matt Damon and Christian Bale. Pretty good overall. We enjoyed it. It has a very classic story arc, and I can't say it's surprising in any way, but just a well-made movie, with quality production and good writing. The actors are all good. Matt Damon is still, um, very watchable :D , and Jon Bernthal has a fun turn as a young Lee Iacocca. Christian Bale and Catriona Balfe make their characters memorable. And even though I'm not very into cars, the car racing scenes are a lot of fun.
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I saw it in a theater when it came out. Seems like eons ago. It was a good movie. I saw it just once, so my memory is hazy. Can't make any comments. May watch it on dvd after the Oscars.
 
PeterG said:
How lucky was I to stumble upon "Remember The Night" starring Barbara Stanwyck and Fred MacMurray? It's possible that one of you helped me on my way to this movie, even if inadvertently. I found a piece of paper at my computer and all that was written on it was "Barbara Stanwyck". So I checked out my local library and they had four of her movies. Remember The Night had the least number of copies, so that's where I started. And what a wonderful start!

The movie is about Stanwyck, who is caught shoplifting. She is brought before a judge but her trial is postponed until after the Christmas holidays. MacMurray is the prosecutor, who feels bad about Stanwyck spending all the holidays in a prison cell. He finds a way for her to post bail and discovers she has nowhere to stay...with jailtime at least she had a roof over her head and something to eat. MacMurray ends up taking her back to his home for Christmas, which is not far from where Stanwyck grew up. They stop by to visit her estranged mother and MacMurray gets a glimpse into what led Stanwyck to the type of life she now has.

I think that Remember The Night might be as perfect a movie as you can get. I'm surprised not only that I had never heard of it, but that it's not considered a classic. On top of that, it takes place at Christmas, which is a genre of movie that gets a lot of attention. Stanwyck and MacMurray are picture-perfect and every member of the cast is definitely on the top of their game. Elizabeth Patterson as Aunt Emma looked familiar, I found out that she played Mrs. Trumbull on I Love Lucy. The script by Preston Sturges can't be faulted...it balances both the sentimental and some toughness so well. There's more to say about the high level of the script, but I don't want to spoil anything. If you enjoy classic film...or just good movies, then this is a must-see. Have some hankies on hand, though.

Trailer for Remember The Night: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyeGZcHVwa8
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Added to my dvd queue. Now at 488. Will move it up after I am done watching the Oscar nom movies.
 
Buzz said:
I saw an old movie called I Remember Mama (1948). I’m not a lover of sappy dramas but this is a wonderful and charming little old movie. Definitely worth checking out.

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I haven't seen this one yet but I adore Irene Dunne. I watched a different movie of hers today called Joy of Living from 1938 with Douglas Fairbanks Jr that was pretty good. I think because she retired from movies in the early 50's (she did a few TV guest appearances until the early 60's) she gets kind of overlooked sometimes as one of the great Classic Hollywood actresses but she was really so good. TCM has helped me slowly go through a huge chunk of her filmography. My Favourite Wife with her, Cary Grant and Randolph Scott is one of my favourite movies.
PeterG said:
How lucky was I to stumble upon "Remember The Night" starring Barbara Stanwyck and Fred MacMurray? It's possible that one of you helped me on my way to this movie, even if inadvertently. I found a piece of paper at my computer and all that was written on it was "Barbara Stanwyck". So I checked out my local library and they had four of her movies. Remember The Night had the least number of copies, so that's where I started. And what a wonderful start!

The movie is about Stanwyck, who is caught shoplifting. She is brought before a judge but her trial is postponed until after the Christmas holidays. MacMurray is the prosecutor, who feels bad about Stanwyck spending all the holidays in a prison cell. He finds a way for her to post bail and discovers she has nowhere to stay...with jailtime at least she had a roof over her head and something to eat. MacMurray ends up taking her back to his home for Christmas, which is not far from where Stanwyck grew up. They stop by to visit her estranged mother and MacMurray gets a glimpse into what led Stanwyck to the type of life she now has.

I think that Remember The Night might be as perfect a movie as you can get. I'm surprised not only that I had never heard of it, but that it's not considered a classic. On top of that, it takes place at Christmas, which is a genre of movie that gets a lot of attention. Stanwyck and MacMurray are picture-perfect and every member of the cast is definitely on the top of their game. Elizabeth Patterson as Aunt Emma looked familiar, I found out that she played Mrs. Trumbull on I Love Lucy. The script by Preston Sturges can't be faulted...it balances both the sentimental and some toughness so well. There's more to say about the high level of the script, but I don't want to spoil anything. If you enjoy classic film...or just good movies, then this is a must-see. Have some hankies on hand, though.

Trailer for Remember The Night: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyeGZcHVwa8
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I've had this one recorded on my parents PVR since Christmas but I have just over 80 movies on their PVR so I haven't gotten to watching it yet. For a completely different tone of movie though, Barbara Stanwyck and Fred MacMurray were in Double Indemnity together as well, it's a film noir directed by Billy Wilder and they are absolutely phenomenal in it. Admittedly I am a big fan of Billy Wilder movies but it's definitely worth a watch.
 
Jay42 said:
I've had this one recorded on my parents PVR since Christmas but I have just over 80 movies on their PVR so I haven't gotten to watching it yet. For a completely different tone of movie though, Barbara Stanwyck and Fred MacMurray were in Double Indemnity together as well, it's a film noir directed by Billy Wilder and they are absolutely phenomenal in it. Admittedly I am a big fan of Billy Wilder movies but it's definitely worth a watch.
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Double Indemnity I've definitely heard of. It's actually one of four movies that Stanwyck and MacMurray did together. But Double Indemnity was the only one I knew of in which they both co-starred. Was surprised that MacMurray got top billing on Remember The Night. I know of him mainly from my childhood as the Dad on My Three Sons. But he appeared in about 90 feature films.

An interesting tidbit about MacMurray from wikipedia:

In 1939, artist C. C. Beck used MacMurray as the initial model for the superhero character who became Fawcett Comics' Captain Marvel.
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Note: Fawcett Comics was later taken over by DC.

Vash01 said:
Added to my dvd queue. Now at 488. Will move it up after I am done watching the Oscar nom movies.
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You have 488 movies on your To See list? And do you get DVD's from your library?
 
PeterG said:
Double Indemnity I've definitely heard of. It's actually one of four movies that Stanwyck and MacMurray did together. But Double Indemnity was the only one I knew of in which they both co-starred. Was surprised that MacMurray got top billing on Remember The Night. I know of him mainly from my childhood as the Dad on My Three Sons. But he appeared in about 90 feature films.
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I actually watched a movie he did with Carole Lombard earlier today (it was a big movie day for me) called Hands Across the Table from 1935. It was really good, they were both excellent in it. MacMurray wasn't who they originally wanted for the part, Carole Lombard wanted Gary Cooper but he had other commitments. It was one of MacMurray's first big roles.

It's also another movie where Ralph Bellamy plays the other man and I am finding it very amusing how often he shows up in movies I watch from the 30's and doesn't get the girl.
 
PeterG said:
Double Indemnity I've definitely heard of. It's actually one of four movies that Stanwyck and MacMurray did together. But Double Indemnity was the only one I knew of in which they both co-starred. Was surprised that MacMurray got top billing on Remember The Night. I know of him mainly from my childhood as the Dad on My Three Sons. But he appeared in about 90 feature films.

An interesting tidbit about MacMurray from wikipedia:



Note: Fawcett Comics was later taken over by DC.



You have 488 movies on your To See list? And do you get DVD's from your library?
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I get them from DVD Netflix. I no longer go to theaters to see movies, so my dvd list is very long. I don't think the library has many movies but I never looked there. They only have what people donate.
 
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Vash01 said:
I get them from DVD Netflix. I no longer go to theaters to see movies, so my dvd list is very long. I don't think the library has many movies but I never looked there. They only gave what people donate.
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Depends on the library. Ours has an extensive collection and you can also "check out" access to a streaming service (not a big one like HBO Max, of course) for 7 days which I think is cool even if most of the content seems geared to kids.
 
Cachoo said:
I'm watching Tar in bits and pieces. The main character stresses me out for some reason.
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I got the dvd last week but I have not started watching it. It is 2:38 hours long, so I already know that I will have to watch it in three sittings.
 
Force Of Evil is a 1948 crime drama (with a dash of film-noir) starring the boyishly handsome John Garfield. He plays an underhanded lawyer who tries to push his brother and his business further into the numbers racket (in spite of his brother hating his work life more and more). The entire cast is very strong (one cast member is a seven year old Beau Bridges). I thought the movie was good, but it was a bit dark for my taste. Wikipedia mentions that Martin Scorsese often mentions the influence of Force Of Evil in the making of his crime dramas. Rotten tomatoes gives this movie a 100% approval rating for the critics and 75% for home viewers.

Trailer for Force Of Evil: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mL5HOk2TvPs
 
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My son has been on a Wreck-It Ralph/Ralph Breaks the Internet kick. Those are actually very cute movies and a lovely message. And I always get a giggle out of the castle Oreos because yes, I have said "Or e o Or e Oh" during The Wizard of Oz. 😄
 
Finally watched The Menu, and it was alright. One or two good comments made but overall not much impact and didn’t say much we didn’t already know.
 
I just finished the second of my “Eat the Rich” double feature Triangle of Sadness and wow! Not the best movie ever but it kept me interested throughout and it was a journey.
 
VGThuy said:
I just finished the second of my “Eat the Rich” double feature Triangle of Sadness and wow! Not the best movie ever but it kept me interested throughout and it was a journey.
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I saw Triangle of Sadness on Saturday night with a friend. She picked it just because it was on a good time for having dinner and then seeing a movie. We knew nothing about it.

We both really liked it. It started off very slow and was a slow build. But when it hit it's straps it was very good and very funny. Can't really comment on the story because that would be too much of a spoiler. However the messages conveyed were very targetted. And I will say that Woody Harrelson was great value.

Although my favourite bit

The woman picking up the hangrenade and say it was one of theirs.
 
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vgerdes said:
For some reason I've always found exorcism movies highly disturbing. I think I'll give this one a pass.
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For some reason? :D

I'm guessing you are not alone in having a feeling of distaste for movies about a loved one's body being taken over by Satan. :lol:
 
I enjoyed Frozen 2 much more than I expected to. I have to admit I don't remember too much from the first Frozen movie, but I know I liked it enough to watch the sequel. So that must mean that I like the second movie better than the first. :) I thought the animation was amazing. And the story was very, very strong. And quite mature...I wondered as I was watching this if it was made for kids or for adults. I thought the songs were decent, but then at the end, Panic At The Disco sang Into The Unknown, followed by Kacey Musgraves singing All Is Found. I found their versions much stronger than the versions performed in the middle of the movie. (Although I do love Idina Menzel singing anything.)
 
watchthis!! said:
I enjoyed Frozen 2 much more than I expected to. I have to admit I don't remember too much from the first Frozen movie, but I know I liked it enough to watch the sequel. So that must mean that I like the second movie better than the first. :) I thought the animation was amazing. And the story was very, very strong. And quite mature...I wondered as I was watching this if it was made for kids or for adults. I thought the songs were decent, but then at the end, Panic At The Disco sang Into The Unknown, followed by Kacey Musgraves singing All Is Found. I found their versions much stronger than the versions performed in the middle of the movie. (Although I do love Idina Menzel singing anything.)
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I enjoyed Frozen 1 more. Liked the songs better. Frozen 2 has its positives, like a better story. What I didn't like about Frz2 was the frequent attempts at humor. It has been a while since I watched it, so I can't be specific. I do remember feeling irritated. Liked the way it ended though.
 
In Jan/Feb I watched on the 1940 movie Rebecca, with great expectations. It was the only Best Picture Oscar won by Hitchcock. I have liked many Hitcock movies but this one was a disappointment. The screenplay was not done well. To be specific, the first part - courtship resulting in marriage- was way too long. The hook to a story needs to come quickly. It took around 25 minutes. The hook in this story is their arrival at the mansion after getting married. That's where the real story - that of Rebecca - takes place. Its size, opulence, and the past created some problems in the marriage (though love overcame those). The later part where Sir Laurence's character tells his wife what happened was all conversation, and the investigation that followed was also all conversation. It works in drama/theatre, but not in a movie, which is a visual medium.

I have not read the novel by Daphne duMaurier, but I read that Hitchcock changed the ending to make it acceptable to Hollywood of that era. He showed Rebecca's death as an accident.

Shortly before I saw this movie, I had seen on YouTube an Indian movie 'Kohraa' (1964) based on the same story, with some changes. It was heavily Indianized, but in a good way. They too changed the ending (different from Hitchcock's) to satisfy the Indian audience. There is an Indian equivalent of Mrs Danvres (?). This was a better movie, IMO. They brought the mansion/palace very early in the movie. When talking about the past, flashbacks were used. The investigation leads to a court trial, with a twist to end the story. There was a supernatural element, which added another dimension. Some may not like it, but to me it appeared as what her (second wife) mind was thinking/projecting out of the memories held by the palace. In both movies and in the book, she is overwhelmed by the size of the mansion and she struggles against the memories of Rebecca, the first wife.
Since this was a Hindi movie, there were some songs, but they were well done. No silliness like in most of the Bollywood movies. I enjoyed this movie, despite Some of its flaws.

Both movies were B&W. Neither had subtitles. That made it difficult for me because I have trouble understanding the British accent. In a movie theatre the sound is much clearer, so no problem there. On the portable dvd player I had to strain myself to understand some of the dialogues.

It was hard to understand the Indian movie too, without the subtitles. I had to watch it three times to understand the story. I was Then able to enjoy it. When I watched Hitchcock's Rebecca, I already knew the story. Some scenes were similar (but not same) in the two movies. I am thinking they must have come from the novel, which I am yet to read.

I discovered that there are two more versions of Rebecca that came out in the 1990s (one may be later). One of them has Lily James as the female lead. I have no desire to watch more versions of this story. I would rather read the original story written by DuMaurier. Will check out our local library for it,
 
@Vash01 Hitchcock did not win a Best Picture Oscar for Rebecca; the Best Picture Oscar is awarded to the producers of the film, not the director. Hitchcock, in fact, never won an Oscar - one of Hollywood’s big oversights.

I disagree about the opening of the film; the audience needs to understand how shy, how naive, how unprepared Fontaine’s character might be for her new role of Mrs. deWinter. Without getting to know this character, the rest of the movie is blunted in its impact.
 
Just finished watching a movie that I loved on so many levels: Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On. It's a documentary that came out last year and it aired on CBC in Canada on Saturday night. I have always liked Buffy Sainte-Marie, and with each new album and with each new program I see about her, I like her more each time. Because I've watched other programs about her, I wasn't expecting much from this documentary, but did the director (Madison Thomas) ever do an amazing job of bringing new parts of Sainte-Marie's story to light. The movie left me wondering if I admired Sainte-Marie more as a singer or social change activist or songwriter or philanthropist or performer or human being.

If this documentary sounds like something you would like to see in any way, please seek it out. You might be able to see it in the U.S. at the PBS website (the video link wouldn't work for me right now in Canada):

www.pbs.org

Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On - Stream the documentary now | American Masters | PBS

See the story of Buffy Sainte-Marie, the Indigenous singer-songwriter, social activist, educator and artist.
www.pbs.org www.pbs.org

Google says it's available on Crave.

Trailer for Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKQVXfsl2j0
 
@PeterG A friend of mine saw this over the weekend and is raving about it. I’m interested to see it because Buffy Sainte-Marie went to UMass, as did I. She was a few years ahead of me, but after she graduated she came back to visit a favorite housemother, the housemother of my dorm. The housemother had an open house and I went and sat on the floor mere feet from Buffy who sang and played for us. It’s one of my favorite college memories.
 
emason said:
@PeterG A friend of mine saw this over the weekend and is raving about it. I’m interested to see it because Buffy Sainte-Marie went to UMass, as did I. She was a few years ahead of me, but after she graduated she came back to visit a favorite housemother, the housemother of my dorm. The housemother had an open house and I went and sat on the floor mere feet from Buffy who sang and played for us. It’s one of my favorite college memories.
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WOW!!! Amazing! Buffy was in Vancouver when Expo 86 was here. But she played in a small space and even though I arrived early (or so I thought), the place was full up so I was out of luck. :wuzrobbed
 
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