The "I'm watching/just watched *movie title* thread....

[yumyumtree]

Wild (2014) with Reese Witherspoon and Laura Dern. I was sooooo looking forward to this and was utterly let down after watching it. I was hoping this movie would be more about the scenic beauty and struggles that occur while walking it.  I was not expecting a story that focused on Reese's promiscuity and drug use.  I get the story.  A young woman is unable to cope with her mother's death and slips into promiscuity and drug use to numb the pain.  Realizing that such behavior is not helping her make peace with herself, she decides to walk the Pacific Crest trail with 12 condoms in her backpack just in case.  Really?  There is no redemption in this story.  The only characters I like are Laura Dern as the mother and the little kid who sings "Red River Valley".  Also there were a couple of nice shots of the scenery around her but there should have been more. I wanted more scenery and less depravity. I'm not a prude as I can get into some really trashy exploitation films but I was not expecting or wanting it in this film. I was hoping it would be something more along the lines of Annaud's The Bear from 1988.  Its hard to like a movie where you can't empathize with the main character.  Also she should have been quite tan after hiking for 94 days, some of it in the desert. There should have been more suspense. I wish I didn't buy the Blu-ray because I won't watch it again. 1 and a half stars out of 5 for Wild.

Sorry, yumyumtree. Maybe I'm being too harsh on the film but I had heard great things and had such high hopes.

It's all right. A lot of people on imdb shared your misgivings.

My plans to see Love and Mercy today were thwarted, but I still hope to see it in Lynnwood later in the week.

[ShayP]

I saw Spy and found it to be quite a fun flick from start to finish.  I detected some subtle influence from the old Pink Panther movies.  There were some really funny, laugh out loud moments too.

[21st Century Man]

It's all right. A lot of people on imdb shared your misgivings.

My plans to see Love and Mercy today were thwarted, but I still hope to see it in Lynnwood later in the week.

Oh, I saw Love and Mercy about 2 weeks ago.  Forgot to comment on it. I enjoyed it.  I'm rather partial to Brian and The Boys though because my Mom is a Wilson and I'm from Long Beach not far from Hawthorne.  No relation though unless very distant.  I wish the movie had been longer and focused on his whole life but that would take a miniseries.  It was well done though I preferred the young man who played young Brian.  John Cusack was way too mannered as older Brian and really looks nothing like Brian.  I think Giammati handled Landy perfectly.  It is a nice, inspirational film about a man who was lost and found himself again with the love of a good woman.  I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

[Camazotz Automat]

Mystery Science Theater 3000, episode 804, The Deadly Mantis. 
(1997 / 1957)

[zeebo]

Jodorowsky's Dune (2013).  Intriguing documentary about one of the most promising movies never made.  But it's about more than that - it's also about the essence and influence of creativity itself.

[Camazotz Automat]

Jodorowsky's Dune (2013).  Intriguing documentary about one of the most promising movies never made.  But it's about more than that - it's also about the essence and influence of creativity itself.

Right up my alley and now in my queue. Thanks, Z.

The spice must flow.

[Sardondi]

I was interested as well, but halfway into the first one I got tired of the Occupy Whatever bias and ditched it. My life has enough indoctrination.

Reported.

Seriously? Wow.

[The General]

Seriously? Wow.

It's just an old joke we've been rehashing.
Gee you've been gone a long time!
Welcome back, don't be a stranger!

[onan]

Seriously? Wow.

Be careful buddy. Next step is double secret reported.

[Camazotz Automat]

Seriously? Wow.

In your absence, onan has become The Enforcer.

Watch your billfold, too. PayPal is trying to take it.

Things have really changed around here.



(Btw, great to see you of course. heh. No one else appreciates my Mata Hari pinball machine references, for the others here are but savages without souls,  propping up instead their base pagan urges.)

[zeebo]

Right up my alley and now in my queue. Thanks, Z.

The spice must flow.

Hope you enjoy, I expect it's just your cup of spiced tea.

[maren]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJNZF3LR0VM

It's TV, but the first episode is pretty amazing!

I've become obsessed -- this is the wallpaper on my macbook air

[zeebo]

Be careful buddy. Next step is double secret reported.

The worst thing about this one is you never even know when it's happened.

[onan]

The worst thing about this one is you never even know when it's happened.

Unless you're in the clique.

[Sardondi]

It's just an old joke we've been rehashing.
Gee you've been gone a long time!
Welcome back, don't be a stranger!

Be careful buddy. Next step is double secret reported.

*sigh* It's awkward (for me - although sweet for connoisseurs of schadenfreude) when a guy who, let's admit it, kinda thought he was the shit and could turn a thread to his evil will, goes away for awhile and comes back to find he's not as fast as he used to be. I admit I was nonplussed, because even though O and I regularly crossed keyboards, we were generally adults who knew that because you disagreed with someone didn't make them evil - much. It was just so un-onan, more like that crazy cat-lady Lilly, the one with the hair-trigger who used all those aliases when she got sequentially banned for splattering her brain on folks when her head exploded. But onan was quick with the PM to dis-ignorant me. Man, I just don't know if I've got the chops anymore. I sure don't have the heart for it.

In your absence, onan has become The Enforcer.

Watch your billfold, too. PayPal is trying to take it.

Things have really changed around here.



(Btw, great to see you of course. heh. No one else appreciates my Mata Hari pinball machine references, for the others here are but savages without souls,  propping up instead their base pagan urges.)

Is you Camazotz Automat? The Enigma who in my imaginatorium is a displaced KGB guy? This is a very recent name-change, yes? I've noticed other name-changes I think. Damn, that's all I need: being the old geezer at the picnic who doesn't recognize his grandchildren.

[Camazotz Automat]

Is you Camazotz Automat? The Enigma who in my imaginatorium is a displaced KGB guy? This is a very recent name-change, yes? I've noticed other name-changes I think. Damn, that's all I need: being the old geezer at the picnic who doesn't recognize his grandchildren.

It is I, old friend. And the name-change is so extremely recent as to cause my own head to go through Johnny Weismuller rubber gator gyrations each time I see "C A M" standing there sentinel like some truncated TETRAGRAMMATON.

The change was made just a little over forty-eight hours ago. 

Feels like several days. I didn't realize how spoiled I was with all those syllables which are now phantom-limb inducing, now like so many guillotined kings' heads in baskets. Heh.

I did warn MV it may be temporary. He surely will not mind a few key taps if this new handle ends up feeling too cold or sterile and I revert.

It's times like this wherein pen-pal/virtual/forum exchanges fall so painfully short of the mark - when one can't physically buy a good crystal tumbler of preferred spirits for the familiar gentleman being waved in from the storm, all his associates so glad to see him emerge through the Stygian doorway that brackets a view of an outer chaos, from which he seems to have been magically reborn.

Salute!

Camazotz Automat



P.S. I don't know if you ever encountered MABUSE, but he has made a few "out of the blue" visits recently, so I've enjoyed myself here lately probably a little more than what I consider my average amount and many of my favorite posters are extant.

[pate]

Good movie, I'd watch it again:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1403177/


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZGLEYxxIVA

But then I am a sick, sick man...

[zeebo]

*sigh* It's awkward (for me - although sweet for connoisseurs of schadenfreude) when a guy who, let's admit it, kinda thought he was the shit and could turn a thread to his evil will, goes away for awhile and comes back to find he's not as fast as he used to be. ...

You still got it man.  An old gunslinger sometimes gets rusty when he's hung up his holsters for awhile, but the reflexes always come back.

...that crazy cat-lady Lilly, the one with the hair-trigger who used all those aliases when she got sequentially banned for splattering her brain on folks when her head exploded.

Haha, blast from the past, that reference - what a show that was.

[yumyumtree]

Oh, I saw Love and Mercy about 2 weeks ago.  Forgot to comment on it. I enjoyed it.  I'm rather partial to Brian and The Boys though because my Mom is a Wilson and I'm from Long Beach not far from Hawthorne.  No relation though unless very distant.  I wish the movie had been longer and focused on his whole life but that would take a miniseries.  It was well done though I preferred the young man who played young Brian.  John Cusack was way too mannered as older Brian and really looks nothing like Brian.  I think Giammati handled Landy perfectly.  It is a nice, inspirational film about a man who was lost and found himself again with the love of a good woman.  I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

Giammati handles most parts perfectly.


Vicki 1953

[21st Century Man]

Carol Reed's The Third Man (1949).  Its about a western novelist named Holly who flies to post-war Vienna to meet up with his best friend, Harry Lime.  Death, a girl and intrigue await him.  Fantastic film and this is the first time I've watched it.  Great black and white noir cinematography, great direction and great performances by all especially Joseph Cotten, Orson Welles and Trevor Howard.   Best film Alida Valli was ever in, I think.  She was gorgeous in this and gave a great performance as well. I particularly loved the bit about Holly's biggest influence being Zane Grey as I think Grey is the best novelist ever to write westerns.  I read most of his books when I was a teenager in the early 80's. Really I don't want to say too much about the film as there are nice twists in the storyline.  Also a wonderful and unforgettable music soundtrack using only a zither. Really a perfect film.  5 out of 5 stars.

[zeebo]

Carol Reed's The Third Man (1949).  ...

Something cool about the cinematography in that film too as I remember, kind of strange and mysterious.

[Sardondi]

...It's times like this wherein pen-pal/virtual/forum exchanges fall so painfully short of the mark - when one can't physically buy a good crystal tumbler of preferred spirits for the familiar gentleman being waved in from the storm, all his associates so glad to see him emerge through the Stygian doorway that brackets a view of an outer chaos, from which he seems to have been magically reborn.

Salute!...

Now how can anyone read that and not feel all warm and toasty inside?

And MABUSE? Oh yes, I recall as one of The Ancient Ones.

Carol Reed's The Third Man (1949).  Its about a western novelist named Holly who flies to post-war Vienna to meet up with his best friend, Harry Lime.  Death, a girl and intrigue await him.  Fantastic film and this is the first time I've watched it.  Great black and white noir cinematography, great direction and great performances by all especially Joseph Cotten, Orson Welles and Trevor Howard.   Best film Alida Valli was ever in, I think.  She was gorgeous in this and gave a great performance as well. I particularly loved the bit about Holly's biggest influence being Zane Grey as I think Grey is the best novelist ever to write westerns.  I read most of his books when I was a teenager in the early 80's. Really I don't want to say too much about the film as there are nice twists in the storyline.  Also a wonderful and unforgettable music soundtrack using only a zither. Really a perfect film.  5 out of 5 stars.

Oh my. Yes indeed. Your post reminds me that generation must come to know these great films for themselves, because knowledge of them isn't automatically transferred like DNA. So I'm glad you saw it. A perfect noir thriller, it's an absolute masterpiece of ambiance and image, and the use of a still-battered-to-its-knees Vienna was brilliant. All those shadows and broken rays of light among the rubble, the classic introductory shot of Harry Lime, dark-light-dark-light, the breathtaking porcelain perfection of Alida Valli all make for a film I must watch every time it is on - such as recently on TCM. And the chase through the sewers, with Lime becoming ever more trapped, feeling like hunted prey, is just as tense and suspenseful as the first time saw it. For all his vile selfishness, you can't help but kind of pull for Lime to get away. The casting of Joseph Cotten, never one of my favorite guys for some reason, kind of rankles, but that's just personal preference. All in all, a true masterpiece.

[albrecht]

My local old theater does a summertime series which shows older films on the big screen. Great fun to see great films on a real screen.

Ok, I saw a promo for a new tv show called "ZOO" that apparently involves animals going crazy and attacking people. I loved those movies, though often cheesy" in the 70s in which animals went crazy ("Day of the Animals", "Ants!", "Swarm", etc but so much modern tv sucks before I invest any time I wanted to get folk's opinion (no spoilers though I think the commercials made it clear what the show was about.) Anyone catch this new show and is it any good?

[21st Century Man]

Now how can anyone read that and not feel all warm and toasty inside?

And MABUSE? Oh yes, I recall as one of The Ancient Ones.

Oh my. Yes indeed. Your post reminds me that generation must come to know these great films for themselves, because knowledge of them isn't automatically transferred like DNA. So I'm glad you saw it. A perfect noir thriller, it's an absolute masterpiece of ambiance and image, and the use of a still-battered-to-its-knees Vienna was brilliant. All those shadows and broken rays of light among the rubble, the classic introductory shot of Harry Lime, dark-light-dark-light, the breathtaking porcelain perfection of Alida Valli all make for a film I must watch every time it is on - such as recently on TCM. And the chase through the sewers, with Lime becoming ever more trapped, feeling like hunted prey, is just as tense and suspenseful as the first time saw it. For all his vile selfishness, you can't help but kind of pull for Lime to get away. The casting of Joseph Cotten, never one of my favorite guys for some reason, kind of rankles, but that's just personal preference. All in all, a true masterpiece.

Well-said! Cotten was on David O. Selznick's payroll and as one of the executive producers, he got his way. I'm sure Orson was happy with the decision as both of them were old friends. I do think that Carol Reed's first choice of Jimmy Stewart would probably have been better and maybe the first part of the picture would have been a bit more entertaining.  Cotten though is a fine subtle actor and I have always enjoyed his work. As it is, Welles steals the film as soon as he shows up. I really enjoyed Trevor Howard's performance as well.

[pate]

For whatever reasons I choose to watch/just watch:

"Love & Teleportation"

as IMDB is right out, 'ere is TottenRotatoes take on it:

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/love_and_teleportation/reviews/

I hope I enjoy...

[Camazotz Automat]

About to initiate Jodorowsky's Dune (2013)

When finished viewing, I will riven the road with midnight wheels under a provocative holy-day Luna  ... 

I will release baking soda chemtrails in my wake to the insouciance of oblivious citizens who do not fear such powdered conspiracies -  neither Arm nor Hammer -  cast from an automobile piloted by a grinning Fool.

How fortunate for them, that I am not recreating and releasing devil jelly over the transoms of their locked country doors!

Now... to Arrakis and a movie that never was.

Goshdang it.

[zeebo]

About to initiate Jodorowsky's Dune (2013) ....

Hey Cam on my version fyi I had to enable English subtitles/captions as there are several languages spoken.  You being a renaissance man though may not need assistance. 

Btw thinking about it afterwords, I don't know if the film would have been successful or not, but it sure would have been an experience.  That time in the early/mid-70's was an interesting time for movies when directors seemed to have more independence resulting in more original films than we got in the post-blockbuster days (before indies made a comeback). 

And that film would have been, if nothing else, an original vision of an imaginative director.  I'm thinking Fellini meets Kubrick meets Seargent Pepper.

[21st Century Man]

DRAW, YOU DIRTY RAT :  CAGNEY And BOGART GO WEST.


The Oklahoma Kid (1939) featuring James Cagney, Humphrey Bogart, Rosemary Lane, Donald Crisp, Ward Bond and Charles Middleton.  Photography by James Wong Howe.

I had low expectations of this movie going into it and I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. I didn't find the concept of Cagney and Bogart out west ridiculous.  There were plenty of mugs from New York out west in those days.  The action moved which seemed to be a rule at Warner Bros. in the 30's. I'm not familiar with director Llloyd Bacon but this film shows excellent craftsmanship and James Wong Howe's cinematography was a large part of that.  This movie entertained me as much as any gangster film the two actors worked on in the 30's.  Even when Cagney's father and brother dies, the film never really stops to mourn.  It is pure Hollywood hokum but what a blast. Joe Pesci references the film in Scorcese's Goodfellas. 4 out of 5 stars and I'm tempering my enthusiasm for the film a bit.   Did they make a bad movie in 1939?

[UnscreenedCaller]

Room at the Top (1959) Excellent dissection of social climbing and what happens when a social climber doesn't follow his heart. Laurence Harvey and Simone Signoret, free on youtube. Last closeup gets you right in the feels.


The Browning Version (1994) Much hated teacher forced into pensionless retirement is redeemed by a student's simple gift. Not Mr. Chips, but great acting by Albert Finney, Greta Saachi.


Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell Televised version. Didn't read the book so can't compare, but the story and visuals were good.

[onan]

OK, there has been some criticism and disdain surrounding Seth MacFarlane. I just saw Ted2, call me an insensitive whatever. I laughed my ass off. Two specific scenes, the improv setting and the fertility clinic. Paid 9 bucks for the matinee, worth twice that.