What Movies Have You Watched Recently?

[katyseagull]

Ok I’ve come off of a pretty big movie run (for me anyway). It’s a bizarre mix of films and I thought I’d briefly share my views of them. I don’t really know why, guess I just like to offer up my opinion! Some of my movies are kind of dated so don’t laugh. [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

Btw, feel free to jump in and post about movies you've seen too if you want. I would really like that. I intend to keep bumping this thread as I write up my mini reviews.


Here are a few I've watched recently that left an impression on me:





Osama (2003)





Ever wonder what life is like in Afghanistan? Here’s your chance. Talk about scary. This gem directed by Siddiq Barmak is a must see. Even without subtitles this movie will speak to you.

Osama was shot entirely in Afghanistan with unknown actors and an Afghani crew. It’s a moving, stark film of life under the Taliban regime for one impoverished family.


The title actually refers to our little heroine, a 12 year old Afghani girl who is disguised as a boy by her mother and grandmother after they are left destitute. (The name ‘Osama’ is given to her by her friend.) Since women were not allowed to work after the Taliban take over, and since the male members of the family have been killed in various wars, the family is forced to send the timid daughter out into the world or face starvation.

Just an incredibly interesting peek into a different world where women are openly mistreated and where foreigners are arrested and executed for trivial transgressions. Some of the scenes shot at the Taliban training school and inside the old mulah’s house at the end are just bleak.

The movie plays like a documentary. It is not really full of a lot of action or dialogue but I guarantee you will find it fascinating. You can’t believe what you are seeing and the realization that it is occurring in contemporary time is strange.

Btw, it is said that the lead in this movie was actually a beggar girl in real life who had never set foot in a theater. Same for the beggar boy in the film. Pretty amazing direction if it’s true.


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Elizabeth (1998)





This is NOT the new film with Helen Mirren. This is the old Elizabeth (1998) with Cate Blanchett. Yes I realize I’m behind the times. I'm hopeless in that respect.


Well, this movie is just a cinematic triumph in my opinion! It’s a period piece that’s just ridiculously confusing if you don’t know your English history but the sets and costumes are about as cool as anything I’ve seen in a long time.

The story begins in 1554 when the Catholic Queen Mary, unable to produce an heir to her throne, tries to prevent her Protestant half-sister Elizabeth from succeeding her. She has Elizabeth arrested for treason but can’t really prove it. When the Queen dies from a stomach tumor (which, btw, she swore was actually a baby) her young half-sister is crowned and inherits an unstable country. England is nearly bankrupt, armyless and in threat of being overtaken. Pressured to enter into alliances with France and Spain, Elizabeth agrees to entertain proposals of marriage from each side all the while hanging on hopes that she will marry her beloved childhood sweetheart, Lord Dudley.

What I love about this movie is the way the director, Shekhar Kapur, portrays the brutality of the 16th century juxtaposed against the lavishness of the court. I can’t tell you how well done it is. Be glad you were never a prisoner during that century. Yikes.

The acting here is first rate. Geoffrey Rush as Elizabeth’s most trusted advisor...Fanny Ardent as the French Warrior Queen...absolutely brilliant. I’ve never really even been a Cate Blanchett fan but she is just awesome. She plays a complicated female role..emotional, strong, clever…moving from sweet innocent girl to chilling power broker. This movie is not boring.



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In The Bedroom (2001)
I think this is one of Pryor’s favorite films. I'm sure he has done a review of it so I'll look and see if I can find a link.

Anyway, this is just incredibly depressing but very polished and well-acted. This story is set in a small fishing town somewhere in Maine. It revolves around a college student, Frank, who is dating a single parent, Natalie, played by the cute Marisa Tomei (anyone else think of George Costanza when her name comes up? [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]) . Frank’s parents don’t know what to think. They like Natalie and her two boys but Frank’s mom is concerned that her son is misleading Natalie since he is expected to leave for an Ivy League college in the near future.










*** SPOILERS ***
Don’t read any farther if you don’t want to know what happens in this film!



What happens is just so depressing it makes me shake my head. Frank ignores his parents’ advice, becoming more involved with Natalie and her kids until he meets a tragic end at the hands of her jealous ex who is arrested but almost immediately released on bail. This is torture for Frank’s parents, Matt and Ruth, who have to bump into the guy around town. When it becomes obvious that the legal system cannot satisfy their needs in meting out justice, the quiet kind-hearted Matt decides to take things into his own hands.


What I liked best: Tom Wilkenson. Very nice portrayal of a decent man whose life has been destroyed. Heartbreaking, believable performance. The scene where Mat lets loose on his wife Ruth is really something. Great direction.

What I didn’t like: The depressing nature of this film! What a downer. There aren’t many films that make me want to kill myself but this one came close. Just too depressing for my taste. The way Sissy Spacek plays Ruth… well, it reminded me of my oldest sister. Just painfully realistic. Also, what did the ending mean? Why did the photo of Natalie smiling with her ex have such an effect on Mat?

Very well acted, beautifully directed. But let’s just say the ending is rather unsettling.



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Okay I’ll save my other ones for later! Sorry this got sort of long [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]


If you have watched a movie lately but don’t feel like starting your own thread please feel free to talk about it in here. I'm always curious to know what people like or dislike. Don't hold back!!

[SL__72]

The Two most recent films I watched were:



Which I thought was hilarious. Aaron Eckhart did a great job playing Nick Naylor, a guy with probably the hardest job in America, doing PR for a big tobacco.

The other one was:



I couldn't help but love this one. Growing up in Minnesota in a Swedish/Lutheran family... I've been listening to this show pretty much my whole life. We used to sometimes listen to "The News from Lake Wobegon" books on tape on long car rides when I was a kid. For anyone who is a fan of the Radio show, this is pretty much a must see.

[diebitter]

oh good thread Katy!


Okay, I watch a movie pretty much every day on the train (I have a 3 hours commute if you count both ways), so I'll try and give a fill-in every work day...


Today I watched Out of the Past. If an old film-noir, a prototype of the genre actually, starrring Robert Mitchum and Kirk Douglas. It was a cool little potboiler, with a twisty plot, double crosses, a femme fatale who kept changing sides, and TONS OF SMOKING! I enjoyed it a fair bit - Robert Mitchum is never less than fun.




Another I watched earlier this week was Carry on Screaming. 'Carry on' movies are an old staple of British TV, and are typically innuendo-ridden joke-fests. Some aren't that good, but Carry on Screaming is pretty funny - it's a sort of British take on the Addams Family. Lots of corny jokes done with a glee that makes up for their cheesiness. (Example: They find an ear, and a police says 'You see this ear?' and another says 'What, that there?' etcetcetc)



I have more, but will come back to it later.

[Shadowrun]

rushmore

" The film is about Max Fischer (played by Jason Schwartzman), a 15-year-old whose extraordinary energy is channeled solely into extracurricular activities — school clubs and painfully over-ambitious theatrical productions, at the expense of his academic success. As a result of Max's failing grades, he is put on "sudden-death academic probation". " wikipedia.com

great movie, everyone should get to see it.

[John Feeney]

We've seen quite a few movies recently, so here are a few, some of which I'd of course seen before:

"Lust for Life" - Classic about Vincent Van Gogh, starring Kirk Douglas. Very well done, I thought.

'Vincent and Theo" - More modern film, also about Van Gogh, directed by Robert Altman, also very good. How can Van Gogh not be everyone's favorite artist?

"And Then There Were None" - Old adaptation of Agatha Christie's "Twelve Little Indians." We see this every couple of years because the kids love it. It really is quite entertaining, and must have been the prototype for many murder mystery movies.

"Rear Window" - Great Hitchcock film with Jimmy Stewart and Grace Kelley. One of the greats.

"Water" - Absolutely stunning visually, with fantastic images of India. Good story too, and a soundtrack I ended up downloading. Recommended.

"The Beauty Academy of Kabul" - Documentary about a beauty school set up to train Afghani women to be hair dressers. A few visually beautiful shots, and a good look at bombed out Kabul. Interesting enough to hold your attention, and moving in places.

"Breakfast at Tiffanys" - I'd seen this years ago, I think. But I remembered nothing of the story, and was surprised to find out how sad it really was. Audrey Hepburn's character is just barely out of touch with a profound emptiness which her lifestyle creates. But her look and style are iconic.

"Thank You for Smoking" - A good look at how propagandists work. Check out the global warming deniers for more.

"Dazed and Confused" - The first time I saw this, maybe 12 years ago (?), it didn't do much for me. This time I loved it. Perhaps because I was that much more removed from the '70s, and more nostalgic for them, I felt it really captured the essence of high school when I was there. Much fun.

"Winchester 73" - A 1950 western with Jimmy Stewart. Very much a classic, with several elements that I think were copied in subsequent films. Tight, clean story which doesn't get boring if you like westerns at all.

"Who Killed the Electric Car?" - I saw this in the theater with one of the most notorious, but best posters on the Politics forum. We both liked it. And wacki says it's the car of the future.

"The Great Escape" - Always riveting from start to finish.

"Take the Money and Run" - Woody Allen's first film, I believe. Still funny, though it made me laugh more when I was about 16.

"Lost in Translation" - Not bad. Good performance from Bill Murray. It effectively conveys a sense of emptiness. Not sure I'll ever to see it again though.

Several others, but I'm tired. :-/

[pauliewalnuts]

Pan's Labyrinth - Finally saw this one today. It really lived up to the hype in my opinion. Glad I was able to see it in the theater. 4.5/5


The Crying Game - Forrest Whitaker is such a great actor. Too bad he doesnt have a bigger part. Still a good movie. Stephen rea can act as well. 4/5.

Volver - This was my third Almodovar film( Habla Con Ella, Todo Sobre Tu Madre) and I might go as far as to say it my favorite of the three. It is hard to know what to say about this movie, other than see it if you have the chance. 4.2/5

Notes on a Scandal- Excellent acting in this movie to back up a pretty good story. Does a pretty good job of exploring such a controversial topic in today's society. 3.75/5.


The Painted Veil- Another good movie certainly worth seeing. Very good acting and stunning landscapes. Edward Norton can play anyone. 3.6/5.

Cache(Hidden) - Interesting French movie. Very good acting to go along with a fairly gripping story. 3.75/5.


Summary: I like most every movie I see, some just more than others.

[rothko]

past few days have been getting some out of the way that weren't particularly exciting to me: neither in anticipation or realization.

[Borden]

Uknown---straight to DVD movie with a bunch of solid name actors...wasn't to bad for straight to DVD.

[pauliewalnuts]

[ QUOTE ]
Uknown---straight to DVD movie with a bunch of solid name actors...wasn't to bad for straight to DVD.

[/ QUOTE ]

Read about this movie a few months back and thought it sounded somewhat interesting. Would you say it is worth renting?

[John Cole]

Blue: Great commentary track by Annette Insdorf, Kieslowski scholar.

Pan's Labyrinth: Saw this Thursday afternoon and had the theater to myself.

The Shop Around the Corner: Standout acting, in particular from Frank Morgan.

Deadwood: The Complete First Season: Maybe not a "film" per se, but the series is Shakespearean in scope, and the characters swear in blank verse.

Mouchette: One of Robert Bresson's searing masterpieces.

The Passenger: Not the best Antonioni (well, maybe it is), but it's final shot will stay with you forever. Great use of architecture, as always.

The Conformist: A visually stunning film.

That's it for the past two weeks.