I have fond memories of watching Madonna and the Seven Moons with my England-born grandmother when I was a teenager (I think this was in 1990). She was a huge movie buff in her youth (she loved Jimmy Cagney and Gary Cooper) and while I don't remember the film well, I remember being quite engaged in the mystery of the story. No idea if it holds up.
Went the Day Well was restored a few years back - FANTASTIC almost-lost film. Definitely recommended. (Also wouldn't be surprised if this list made its way to the Criterion channel in the form of a curated playlist - they're usually pretty good at keeping on top of stuff like this.)
Also would love to see the original 39-film foreign film list if you have it.....
Just a quick compliment. I am so glad I subscribed on a spur of the moment late night bit of surfing. This has turned into something I look forward to every Saturday morning as I relax and enjoy breakfast and some tunes. I also end up renting a couple more things in iTunes to it keeps the old movie queue stocked.
I quite enjoyed The Snorkel, which I think was part of an Early Hammer films box set that Eureka or Arrow put out, which is how I saw it. I was a little surprised to hear it get the shout out. Quatermass and the Pit and The Devil Rides Out are two great films that I recommend to anyone who hasn’t seen them. Nothing else on the list stands out, pretty sure I saw Plague of Zombies, but have no memory of it. Guess I better rewatch it.
I have no idea about this controversy with film criticism you’re talking about, so a little context would’ve been appreciated, but if someone is bagging out Promising Young Woman, I suspect that they’re feeling seen.
Speaking of Kristen Wiig, I really liked her in WW84. The rest of the film, hmm, but Kristen Wiig was one of the good things in it.
The Lone Ranger. AKA the movie that killed Gore Verbinski’s career. Fuck. One of the most frustrating movies that I kinda dig.
Biggest problem with Lone Ranger is casting. I HATE the character that Armie Hammer plays. He’s totally miscast. I’d much rather watch a movie with his characters brother, Dan, played by James Badge Dale, as the lead. I get that’s kind of the point of the movie, but look what happens to the movie when Hammer finally becomes that character, we get the finale. And it’s still one of the best set pieces of the last 10 years. If only the rest of the movie had that energy & inventiveness. I think they needed a more likeable actor to play Lone Ranger. Chris Pine or Chris Pratt. Someone who doesn’t seem to be putting their nose up to the audience, if you get my meaning. Maybe Ryan Reynolds. Someone you don’t want to punch in the face.
Sometimes the “reluctant hero” trope can really bring a movie down. It’s my main issue with “Lone Ranger”(and “Rogue One”). The character Armie Hammer plays is just annoyingly vanilla & holier than thou. Some actors could pull that off. But Armie Hammer has that quality to him already & so it’s kinda..ugh. Also, If you freeze frame during the scene where the bad guy eats Dan’s heart, I’m pretty sure you can catch Hammer drooling & licking his lips.
I wish Gore Verbinski was the one making Indiana Jones 5. He’s about the only filmmaker I could see doing it justice besides Spielberg. No offence to James Mangold. He’s a fine director. But he’s not the type of director where I want to see every film he makes because it’s a “James Mangold film”.
I’d rather watch Gore Verbsinki’s worst than James Mangold’s best.
I actually didn't mind that rant in Malcolm and Marie and I didn't think the film was that bad, it's just too bad the rest of the film didn't have more scenes like that.
The Carey Mulligan thing was weird, it reminds me of when that asshole Rex Reed fat-shamed Melissa McCarthy over her role in Identity Thief(underrated movie BTW)and Paul Feig rightfully told him to fuck off on Twitter. Thankfully this wasn't nearly as awful as that, it is unfortunate that the critic chose to focus on her looks in the film which suggests he missed the point entirely.
Not surprised that Variety screwed up again though as they've had real problems for decades now, I remember when they fired a female film critic because she dared to go against the grain and give Gigli a positive review, so while the Society of Film Critics might be overreacting i've got very little sympathy for Variety at this point between this and their severe lack of diversity so i'm not about to defend them.
How do you manage to consume this much media every week?? It's insane!
I have fond memories of watching Madonna and the Seven Moons with my England-born grandmother when I was a teenager (I think this was in 1990). She was a huge movie buff in her youth (she loved Jimmy Cagney and Gary Cooper) and while I don't remember the film well, I remember being quite engaged in the mystery of the story. No idea if it holds up.
Man, I’m really excited to see what you think of Babylon 5 as you go through it. One of the formative SF series of my youth. (Younger years, anyway.)
Went the Day Well was restored a few years back - FANTASTIC almost-lost film. Definitely recommended. (Also wouldn't be surprised if this list made its way to the Criterion channel in the form of a curated playlist - they're usually pretty good at keeping on top of stuff like this.)
Also would love to see the original 39-film foreign film list if you have it.....
Just a quick compliment. I am so glad I subscribed on a spur of the moment late night bit of surfing. This has turned into something I look forward to every Saturday morning as I relax and enjoy breakfast and some tunes. I also end up renting a couple more things in iTunes to it keeps the old movie queue stocked.
I quite enjoyed The Snorkel, which I think was part of an Early Hammer films box set that Eureka or Arrow put out, which is how I saw it. I was a little surprised to hear it get the shout out. Quatermass and the Pit and The Devil Rides Out are two great films that I recommend to anyone who hasn’t seen them. Nothing else on the list stands out, pretty sure I saw Plague of Zombies, but have no memory of it. Guess I better rewatch it.
I have no idea about this controversy with film criticism you’re talking about, so a little context would’ve been appreciated, but if someone is bagging out Promising Young Woman, I suspect that they’re feeling seen.
Speaking of Kristen Wiig, I really liked her in WW84. The rest of the film, hmm, but Kristen Wiig was one of the good things in it.
The Lone Ranger. AKA the movie that killed Gore Verbinski’s career. Fuck. One of the most frustrating movies that I kinda dig.
Biggest problem with Lone Ranger is casting. I HATE the character that Armie Hammer plays. He’s totally miscast. I’d much rather watch a movie with his characters brother, Dan, played by James Badge Dale, as the lead. I get that’s kind of the point of the movie, but look what happens to the movie when Hammer finally becomes that character, we get the finale. And it’s still one of the best set pieces of the last 10 years. If only the rest of the movie had that energy & inventiveness. I think they needed a more likeable actor to play Lone Ranger. Chris Pine or Chris Pratt. Someone who doesn’t seem to be putting their nose up to the audience, if you get my meaning. Maybe Ryan Reynolds. Someone you don’t want to punch in the face.
Sometimes the “reluctant hero” trope can really bring a movie down. It’s my main issue with “Lone Ranger”(and “Rogue One”). The character Armie Hammer plays is just annoyingly vanilla & holier than thou. Some actors could pull that off. But Armie Hammer has that quality to him already & so it’s kinda..ugh. Also, If you freeze frame during the scene where the bad guy eats Dan’s heart, I’m pretty sure you can catch Hammer drooling & licking his lips.
I wish Gore Verbinski was the one making Indiana Jones 5. He’s about the only filmmaker I could see doing it justice besides Spielberg. No offence to James Mangold. He’s a fine director. But he’s not the type of director where I want to see every film he makes because it’s a “James Mangold film”.
I’d rather watch Gore Verbsinki’s worst than James Mangold’s best.
I actually didn't mind that rant in Malcolm and Marie and I didn't think the film was that bad, it's just too bad the rest of the film didn't have more scenes like that.
The Carey Mulligan thing was weird, it reminds me of when that asshole Rex Reed fat-shamed Melissa McCarthy over her role in Identity Thief(underrated movie BTW)and Paul Feig rightfully told him to fuck off on Twitter. Thankfully this wasn't nearly as awful as that, it is unfortunate that the critic chose to focus on her looks in the film which suggests he missed the point entirely.
Not surprised that Variety screwed up again though as they've had real problems for decades now, I remember when they fired a female film critic because she dared to go against the grain and give Gigli a positive review, so while the Society of Film Critics might be overreacting i've got very little sympathy for Variety at this point between this and their severe lack of diversity so i'm not about to defend them.
These Are the Damned is a great sci-fi/thriller if that’s one of the films you haven’t seen. Stylishly shot by a jobbing Joseph Losey