Rate the last film you watched out of 5

[glb]

8 minutes ago, nightwaxon said:

Watched this in the cinema last night. Relied too much on jump scares and the plot was predictable. But was a good watch. Loved the bit when she was in the car and her sister came out to see her. I think your score 3/5 is spot on. 

Think it starts off really well, and had potential, but does drag by the end. I really wish I hadn’t already seen the sister/car bit in a trailer as that is a fun, totally unexpected scare. Something is obviously about to happen, but the execution is great.

[Vimster]

Old Flames (1990)

Excellent BBC drama from 1990 where Stephen Fry and Simon Callow play two former public schoolboys from the same house at school, Fry being a successful barrister, Callow a nervous recluse, making an awkward pairing when they and others from school become the targets for ruination. The dry, dark humour is spot-on, it doesn't get in the way of a tightly-woven and constantly intriguing conspiracy that has a very satisfying conclusion. Also features Miriam Margolyes and Celia Imrie.

 

4/5

 

 

[ScouserInExile]

Tenet 

 

I have no idea what happened but I think I enjoyed it. I think.

 

4/5 I think 

[Bazjam]

Pearl - 4.5/5

 

I really liked X, but this was even better. Ti West is fast becoming one of my favourite horror directors. It’s a luridly odd movie with moments of pitch black humour, and Mia Goth is fantastic in it. Loved it. Can’t wait to see the closing film in the trilogy now.

[Thor]

Superman 

 

I may get lambasted for this, but it doesn't end well. Everything up to Lex's reveal is great, everything after that is, well, shite. It's contrived trash. 

 

2.5/5

 

 

Heat

 

Now this is a fucking classic. A masterclass from Pacino despite him clearly being coked off his tits for much of it, with DeNiro also bringing his A game. One of the best shootouts in movie history. Style and substance. 

 

5/5

[PK]

A Bunch of Amateurs (2022) - 5/5

Just been to see this at our local documentary film festival, it's absolutely wonderful. It's about the Bradford Movie Makers club, an amateur filmmaking society founded in 1932, and their various trials & tribulations as they try to carry on making films despite having no money and a dwindling membership. It's so, so lovely; very funny, very sad, and just a real delight to watch.

 

This is the trailer:

 

 

And this is the club's website  

 

Not sure what the plan for releasing it is, I got a bit anxious when the cinema lights came up so ran away from the Q&A 😅

[Monkeyboy]

Under Siege 2

 

Before Steven Seagal added the extra pounds and the extra hairline (although he's noticeably less balding than in previous films, so the hairline is a work in progress here). One thing the film has in its favour is that it doesn't mess about. It's paced well and has plenty of action, especially in the last 20 minutes. The Bullshido style of martial arts gets one overly long edit which just shows Seagal flapping his arms around and doing nothing. It's hilarious. Also, it doesn't have villains that are anywhere near as good as the first one.

 

I enjoyed it though! Sometimes for the wrong reasons.

 

3 out of 5

[Totoro]

RRR 5/5

This was recommended viewing from Hideo Kojima - after viewing I can see why!

Amazing blast of story and action from start to finish with some properly bonkers moments.

 

 

[Baxacha]

I am a big fan of Marvel movies so it was enjoyable to watch a new movie. To be honest, I miss the avengers. By the way guys, do you have a streaming device? Since I bought Firestick, I cut the cord and don't regret it. You can find useful info here https://www.firesticktricks.com/cinema-apk-firestick.html about how to install various apps on Firestick. Just check it out.

[Jamie John]

A couple from recent weeks:

 

The Godfather (1972) - 4K Ultra HD Blu-Ray

 

 

My first time watching this in a good ten years. A stone classic, obviously. What struck me this time around was how unconventional its structure was: it seems to almost reach its climax midway through, when Michael carries out the killings at the restaurant, but then the movie starts again with his journey to Italy and subsequent return to America. I've never read the original novel - I've heard it's a bit of a potboiler - but I was still surprised by how novelistic this felt to watch, if you catch my drift. Not a bad thing, just different. Pacino and Brando's performances are masterful, as you may well have heard. I got the 4K trilogy boxset and it's a beautiful version of a 50 year-old film. I need to find another spare three hours to re-watch Part II now.

 

5/5

 

LA Confidential (1997) - Netflix

 

 

Another rewatch, although this I hadn't seen for even longer than The Godfather. The writing is a bit on the nose - James Cromwell saying 'Boyo' every other word got on my nerves - and I'm not sure about Russell Crowe's casting as a ruthless hardman, but it's well-paced with some exciting editing, and the sudden violence still has the power to shock. Worth watching again before it disappears off Netflix at the end of the week.

 

4/5

[Mikes]

On 21/10/2022 at 10:06, Nick R said:

@Sabreman If you find that poster similarity pleasing, you may also like these:

 

https://boxd.it/1FFma

and

https://boxd.it/aa9M0

 

 

[Ry]

The Stranger - 3.5/5

 

Very dreary austrailian crime thriller based on a true story. I didnt know anything about the story so was surprised about a third of the way in and the direction it went. Very sombre and it really sets a great tone. Joel Edgerton and Sean Harris are both fantastic as always. On netflix now. 

[PK]

On 23/10/2022 at 18:09, PK said:

A Bunch of Amateurs (2022) - 5/5

 

 

Not sure what the plan for releasing it is, I got a bit anxious when the cinema lights came up so ran away from the Q&A 😅

 

It's here, with links to buy tickets: https://www.metfilmdistribution.co.uk/a-bunch-of-amateurs

 

Spoiler

Previews and Special Q&A Screenings

24.10.22 — Cambridge Film Festival — Tickets

28.10.22 — Holmfirth Film Festival — Tickets

2.11.22 — London / BFI Southbank / Preview + Q&A — Tickets

6.11.22 — Central Scotland Documentary Festival — Tickets

8.11.22 — Leeds Film Festival + Q&A — Tickets

9.11.22 — London / Picturehouse Central / Preview + Q&A — Tickets

9.11.22 — Bath Film Festival — Tickets

10.11.22 — Bradford / National Science + Media Museum / Homecoming Premiere + Q&A — Tickets

10.11.22 — Ambleside / Inward Eye Film Festival — Tickets

11.11.22 — Sheffield / Showroom Cinema + Q&A

12.11.22 — Newcastle / Tyneside Cinema + Q&A — Tickets

13.11.22 — London / DocHouse + Q&A — Tickets

16.11.22 — Liverpool / FACT Cinema + Q&A — Tickets

17.11.22 — York / City Screen + Q&A — Tickets

19.11.22 — Aldeburgh Film Festival / Aldeburgh Cinema + Q&A — Tickets

23.11.22 — Oxford / Phoenix Picturehouse + Q&A — Tickets

24.11.22 — Hebden Bridge / Hebden Bridge Picture House + Q&A

29.11.22 — Ilkley / Ilkley Cinema + Q&A

 

General Release

11.11.22 — Bradford / National Science + Media Museum

11.11.22 — Bradford / The Light

11.11.22 — London / Picturehouse Central

11.11.22 —Sheffield / Showroom Cinema

11.11.22 —Cardiff / Chapter

11.11.22 — Ambleside / Zeffirellis

11.11.22 — Newcastle / Tyneside Cinema

11.11.22 — Keswick / Alhambra cinema

12.11.22 — London / Riverside studios - Tickets

12.11.22 — Halifax / Square Chapel Arts Centre

12.11.22 — Dunoon Film Festival / Dunoon Burgh Hall — Tickets

13.11.22 — London / DocHouse

17.11.22 — Liverpool / FACT Cinema — Tickets

18.11.22 — Leeds / Showcase

18.11.22 — Ipswich / King Street Cinema — Tickets

18.11.22 —Newbury / Corn Exchange

21.11.22 — Saffron Waldon/ Saffron Screen

22.11.22 — Nationwide / Picturehouse Cinemas - Tickets

24.11.22 — Oxford / Phoenix Picturehouse — Tickets

24.11.22 — Hackney/ Picturehouse — Tickets

25.11.22 — Warwick / Warwick Arts Centre - Tickets

27.11.22 — Whitby / Whitby Pavilion — Tickets

28.11.22 — Bristol / Cube — Tickets

29.11.22 — Glasgow / Glasgow Film Theatre - Tickets

30.11.22 — Wallingford / Corn Exchange

2.12.22 — Lancaster / Dukes - Tickets

3.12.22 — Alnwick / Alnwick Playhouse

10.12.22 — Chichester / Chichester Cinema at New Park - Tickets

19.12.22 — Buxton / Buxton Opera House - Tickets

10.12.22 — Pershore / Number 8

 

[Jamie John]

Alien (1979) - 4K UHD Blu-Ray

 

 

One of my favourite films, but again one that I hadn't seen in a while. Everything that could be written or said about it has been written or said already, but suffice to say that it's a masterpiece. It's incredible to think that this was only Scott's second film, and even more incredible that he then he went on to make Blade Runner.

 

Anyway, what a treat. The set design is unmatched. It all looks predictably fantastic in 4K. It's a real shame we haven't got a 4K render of the sequel yet.

 

I should probably watch something I haven't seen at least twice already, eh?

[ZOK]

39 minutes ago, Jamie John said:

I should probably watch something I haven't seen at least twice already, eh?

Do you have MUBI? You can get it free for a month and you’ll have an embarrassment of new riches to indulge in.

[Jamie John]

5 minutes ago, ZOK said:

Do you have MUBI? You can get it free for a month and you’ll have an embarrassment of new riches to indulge in.

 

It's not an issue of not having access to new films - I've got about 15 unwatched 4K Blu-Rays on my shelf, as well as Netflix and Amazon subscriptions - it's more that I keep buying classics I know I like to rewatch them in 4K so I can coo at how pretty they are.

 

I don't really have the opportunity to watch a full film in the week, so I'm going to try to watch one each weekend for the rest of the year. I want to get through my UHD backlog first. There's a mix of stuff I have and haven't seen before, so I'll alternate.

[glb]

Don't Worry Darling - 2/5

 

Flipped between scoring this a 2 or a 3; felt like a 3 when it finished but on reflection there's too many issues with it for that score. On the plus side it's beautiful looking, and surely one of the front runners for costume and wardrobe awards, which isn't meant to damn with faint praise. Florence Pugh is also excellent, wringing a lot out of her role. On the other hand it's wholly derivative and as such never really feels like it makes a real statement of its own.

 

Spoiler

Think I preferred the initial reveal that people in the modern world binned off their lives to live in a retro 50s bubble, but as that idea was similarly done by M Night Shyamalan in The Village I guess this needed another layer of complexity to avoid accusations of outright plagiarism. Unfortunately, this extra twist added more questions, and undid a lot of the conceit.

 

An admirable failure in many ways but also still a disappointment after the wonderful Booksmart.

 

(#813)

[glb]

The Exorcist – 4/5 (screener)

 

In my quest – ha, “quest”! – ahem, in my folly of attempting to watch 1,000 films I haven’t previously seen in a calendar year I’ve got good reason to address some glaring omissions in my viewing history. Mentioned last week in the Halloween Ends thread that I’d never actually seen The Exorcist, so after a few days of watching some fairly pap films decided to take the plunge (into pea green soup)

 

It's an odd, albeit not a negative, experience watching a film that is such a cultural touchstone. Recognising so much of the story as it unfolds. Had a similar reaction to The Godfather, which I only watched for the first time within the last decade. Does it diminish a film? I don’t think so. A good film is a good film, despite age fraying the edges. Older ballerinas carry a certain beautiful elegance; and classic films do too. One of my favourite cinema trips, and there’s been a few over the years, was a visit to the Olympic in Barnes in 2019 to watch Apocalypse Now. I’d been meaning to ever since my dad passed away in 2006: it was one of the few DVDs on a shelf in his flat and he had spoken about how he enjoyed the film, but we never sat down to watch it together. Despite the intent, the time just has to feel right but then it's often too late. Most of ‘Now’s major moments I’d seen in clips, but as a complete film it blew me away. Three hours feeling like 30 dreamlike minutes, and yet also a gruelling sensory overload. Being in the front row probably helped with that, the screen looming over me, an expansive window to a world filled with shock and awe.

 

For The Exorcist, the experience wasn’t quite as transcendent, but it’s still a wonderful, powerful film. I’ve watched 126 horror films this year alone, and a whole lot more in the proceeding 41 years (maybe not so many before being spooked by Rawhead Rex as a wide-eyed eight year-old in 1988) but few are as chilling. The matter-of-fact approach to events enhances the atmosphere, lending a feeling of authenticity that jump scares and trickery completely undermine in far too many modern horrors (goodness only knows what a hash David Gordon Green will make of the needless upcoming remake)

 

Not all horror films need three-dimensional characters. Michael Myers was far scarier when he was just an unrelenting, entirely unreasonable bogeyman. But in The Exorcist the internal battles of Father Karras and Father Merrin lend an emotional connection, offering a worn tale of good Vs evil an unexpected intimacy. Like when a great orator lowers their voice, prompting an audience to lean in so they don’t miss a thing, The Exorcist is wholly absorbing. It’s a fascinating, transfixing product of 1970s cinema, and stands out even amid a decade that produced so many outrageously good films.

 

With 185 films to watch to reach that magic (or stupid, delete as appropriate) total of 1,000, it might be time to fill in a few more gaps with some other omissions. I’m still not watching White Chicks though.

 

(#814 – I’m annoyed I didn’t make this #666, a massive missed opportunity)

[Arn X Treme]

Watched a bunch this weekend past.

 

Terrifier 2 - 3/5 

 

VHS99 - 2/5 (Won't review each segment, but they were mainly poor, with a couple propping it up)

 

Deadstream - 3/5 

 

Cursed Friends - 1/5 (Turned off after ten mins)

 

Slayers - 1/5 Didn't make it through the first half an hour. 

[Ry]

1 hour ago, glb said:

The Exorcist – 4/5 (screener)

 

In my quest – ha, “quest”! – ahem, in my folly of attempting to watch 1,000 films I haven’t previously seen in a calendar year I’ve got good reason to address some glaring omissions in my viewing history. Mentioned last week in the Halloween Ends thread that I’d never actually seen The Exorcist, so after a few days of watching some fairly pap films decided to take the plunge (into pea green soup)

 

It's an odd, albeit not a negative, experience watching a film that is such a cultural touchstone. Recognising so much of the story as it unfolds. Had a similar reaction to The Godfather, which I only watched for the first time within the last decade. Does it diminish a film? I don’t think so. A good film is a good film, despite age fraying the edges. Older ballerinas carry a certain beautiful elegance; and classic films do too. One of my favourite cinema trips, and there’s been a few over the years, was a visit to the Olympic in Barnes in 2019 to watch Apocalypse Now. I’d been meaning to ever since my dad passed away in 2006: it was one of the few DVDs on a shelf in his flat and he had spoken about how he enjoyed the film, but we never sat down to watch it together. Despite the intent, the time just has to feel right but then it's often too late. Most of ‘Now’s major moments I’d seen in clips, but as a complete film it blew me away. Three hours feeling like 30 dreamlike minutes, and yet also a gruelling sensory overload. Being in the front row probably helped with that, the screen looming over me, an expansive window to a world filled with shock and awe.

 

For The Exorcist, the experience wasn’t quite as transcendent, but it’s still a wonderful, powerful film. I’ve watched 126 horror films this year alone, and a whole lot more in the proceeding 41 years (maybe not so many before being spooked by Rawhead Rex as a wide-eyed eight year-old in 1988) but few are as chilling. The matter-of-fact approach to events enhances the atmosphere, lending a feeling of authenticity that jump scares and trickery completely undermine in far too many modern horrors (goodness only knows what a hash David Gordon Green will make of the needless upcoming remake)

 

Not all horror films need three-dimensional characters. Michael Myers was far scarier when he was just an unrelenting, entirely unreasonable bogeyman. But in The Exorcist the internal battles of Father Karras and Father Merrin lend an emotional connection, offering a worn tale of good Vs evil an unexpected intimacy. Like when a great orator lowers their voice, prompting an audience to lean in so they don’t miss a thing, The Exorcist is wholly absorbing. It’s a fascinating, transfixing product of 1970s cinema, and stands out even amid a decade that produced so many outrageously good films.

 

With 185 films to watch to reach that magic (or stupid, delete as appropriate) total of 1,000, it might be time to fill in a few more gaps with some other omissions. I’m still not watching White Chicks though.

 

(#814 – I’m annoyed I didn’t make this #666, a massive missed opportunity)

 

Are you a film reviewer? 

 

Just wondering why you had to say you watched a screener of The Exorcist? 

[glb]

10 minutes ago, Ry said:

 

Are you a film reviewer? 

 

Just wondering why you had to say you watched a screener of The Exorcist? 

Don’t have a copy but do have access to WB’s archive, which is a useful perk of the (non-film reviewer) job

[Mike S]

3 hours ago, glb said:

what a hash David Gordon Green will make of the needless upcoming remake)

 

 

They are remaking The Exorcist?!

 

I cannot think of a bigger waste of time, effort, and money than remaking a film that remains pretty much note perfect all the way through and as potent now as it was when released almost fifty years ago.

 

What I would welcome is a 4K release but assume they are waiting for the fiftieth anniversary.

[glb]

1 hour ago, Mike S said:

 

 

They are remaking The Exorcist?!

 

I cannot think of a bigger waste of time, effort, and money than remaking a film that remains pretty much note perfect all the way through and as potent now as it was when released almost fifty years ago.

 

What I would welcome is a 4K release but assume they are waiting for the fiftieth anniversary.

Yup. Not just a remake but a trilogy. Given their Halloween trilogy was about as much fun as getting kicked in the genitals by a horse, it bodes very badly indeed.

[Ry]

Barbarian - 4/5

 

Loved it.

 

So well made, sharply written and really well directed. Darkly funny at times as well. 

 

Definitely in my top 5 of the year so far. Good to have a decent horror film. 

[glb]

The Last Broadcast 2/5 (Prime)

 

A curiosity given it is one of the first found footage horror films in the modern era, arriving a year before Blair Witch, albeit almost two decades after Cannibal Holocaust. The Last Broadcast hasn't aged well and has the pacing of a snail going uphill in treacle. However, given it was made for $900 and went on to generate $4m in box office, it's noteworthy for its role in pioneering an entirely new sub-genre of horror for modern audiences.

 

(#815)

[Mike S]

19 hours ago, glb said:

Yup. Not just a remake but a trilogy. Given their Halloween trilogy was about as much fun as getting kicked in the genitals by a horse, it bodes very badly indeed.

 

 

Oh dear. 

 

There is no way that these will not be as dreadful as they are unnecessary.  I can only think of one remake of a seventies or eighties horror that was close to being OK, that being Evil Dead but, even that, I could have lived without as, tonally, it missed the point of the original by a mile.  Every other remake has been a waste of time. The only genuinely brilliant, exceptional in their own right, and worthy reworkings of older genre movies I can think of are The Fly and The Thing. 

 

 

[Stifler]

Watched Wrath of Man on Prime last night.

 

The writing could have been refined a bit, and the story was a tad predictable, but it's hard to not enjoy Jason Statham murdering his was through the bad guys.

 

3/5

[ZOK]

1 hour ago, Mike S said:

 

 

Oh dear. 

 

There is no way that these will not be as dreadful as they are unnecessary.  I can only think of one remake of a seventies or eighties horror that was close to being OK, that being Evil Dead but, even that, I could have lived without as, tonally, it missed the point of the original by a mile.  Every other remake has been a waste of time. The only genuinely brilliant, exceptional in their own right, and worthy reworkings of older genre movies I can think of are The Fly and The Thing. 

 

 

Invasion of the Body Snatchers! 

[Vimster]

1 hour ago, Mike S said:

 

 

Oh dear. 

 

There is no way that these will not be as dreadful as they are unnecessary.  I can only think of one remake of a seventies or eighties horror that was close to being OK, that being Evil Dead but, even that, I could have lived without as, tonally, it missed the point of the original by a mile.  Every other remake has been a waste of time. The only genuinely brilliant, exceptional in their own right, and worthy reworkings of older genre movies I can think of are The Fly and The Thing. 

 

 

I recall the rights to The Exorcist being bought up was on the news a while back and they mentioned then they wanted to turn it into a franchise. Any right-thinking person's blood should run cold at the mere thought of that. Whenever I see things like this I automatically assume the new rights-holders feel the original wasn't good enough and needed "improving".

 

I'd add the Child's Play re-imaging from a couple of years back to the good pile. It wasn't as nastily irreverent as the originals but had enough good new ideas, felt like an update that worked. 

[glb]

The Crazies remake is half-decent, not quite as mainstream as those mentioned so far but at least it justified being made by virtue of being quite good.