Mr. Smith Goes To Washington - Naive and idealistic Jefferson Smith, leader of the Boy Rangers, is appointed to the United States Senate by the puppet governor of his state. He soon discovers, upon going to Washington, many shortcomings of the political process as his earnest goal of a national boys’ camp leads to a conflict with the state political boss.
This is such a wonderful classic Hollywood movie starring Jimmy Stewart and directed by Frank Capra. It's the movie that made Stewart a star. The movie was premiered in D.C. for congress and several senators walked out and public decried the movie for making the senate look corrupt. It's good to have a little brightness in the current political environment.
21 Years: Richard Linklater (2014) Documentary that takes a behind the scenes tour of groundbreaking director Richard Linklater’s last 21 years creating his iconic legacy of films from the unconventional breakout ‘Slacker’ to the innovative ‘Boyhood’. Features candid conversations with actors Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy, Matthew McConaughey and others.
Pretty much standard "I love working with this guy" documentary fare. If you're a big Linklater fan though, it's pretty much a must see.
Mr. Smith Goes To Washington - Naive and idealistic Jefferson Smith, leader of the Boy Rangers, is appointed to the United States Senate by the puppet governor of his state. He soon discovers, upon going to Washington, many shortcomings of the political process as his earnest goal of a national boys’ camp leads to a conflict with the state political boss.
This is such a wonderful classic Hollywood movie starring Jimmy Stewart and directed by Frank Capra. It's the movie that made Stewart a star. The movie was premiered in D.C. for congress and several senators walked out and public decried the movie for making the senate look corrupt. It's good to have a little brightness in the current political environment.
From IMDb: "The 47-year old Al Capone, after 10 years in prison, starts suffering from dementia and comes to be haunted by his violent past." This is a weird one. It's like all of the pieces are there, but nobody ever bothers to put them in place. Tom Hardy gets a little bit too lost in a dementia ridden Al Capone to actually make the character engaging to watch, it's just a lot of staring into the middle distance and subtitle requiring mumbling. After all the Capone related media we've had over the years, this seemed like it would provide a refreshingly different take, but the execution wasn't up to scratch in my opinion. The whole thing feels very muddled, which of course could be a deliberate choice to display Capone's decreasing cognisance, but it doesn't make for very enjoyable watching.
The Last Movie Star (2017) An aging screen icon gets lured into accepting an award at a rinky-dink film festival in Nashville, Tenn., sending him on a hilarious fish-out-of-water adventure and an unexpectedly poignant journey into his past.
This is a pleasant little indie that pays homage not only to the character in the movie but to its star as well. Talk show appearances and movie clips from Burt Reynolds career are interspersed to give a weight to the character Vic being a real aging movie star. Amazon Prime
Miss Sloane (2016) An ambitious lobbyist faces off against the powerful gun lobby in an attempt to pass gun control legislation.
This movie is quite out there and crosses the line to ridiculous from time to time. However, it never ceases to be a really entertaining political thriller. Jessica Chastain carries the film like a true movie star. Amazon Prime
The Long Goodbye - I didn't realize this was an Altman film going in but it only took about a scene and a half to recognize his signature use of the camera and conversation. Elliot Gould may have taken a decade of life off his lungs filming this movie. Terrific film.
Amazon Prime
Just watched this and thought it was hysterical. My jaw hit the floor when Arnold Schwarzenegger just randomly walks into the movie in an uncredited role as a random goon. This really was great.
The Long Goodbye - I didn't realize this was an Altman film going in but it only took about a scene and a half to recognize his signature use of the camera and conversation. Elliot Gould may have taken a decade of life off his lungs filming this movie. Terrific film.
Amazon Prime
Just watched this and thought it was hysterical. My jaw hit the floor when Arnold Schwarzenegger just randomly walks into the movie in an uncredited role as a random goon. This really was great.
I almost mentioned it but didn't want to ruin the surprise. The guy who plays Capt. McClusky in The Godfather doesn't look nearly as large in the Godfather as he does in this movie.
Just One Of The Guys (1985) When Terry Griffith loses her high school’s writing competition, she’s convinced that it’s because she’s a girl. So Terry decides to change high schools and pose as a boy to prove her point. Her brother, Buddy, helps her pass as a guy so well that she is soon making friends with the boys at school, including the attractive Rick, who becomes her new best friend. But her gender-swapping makes things difficult when she falls in love with him.
This is a classic case of a movie that you love as a horny 13 year old kid but when you watch it as an adult your realize just how bad it is. Joyce Hyser will always hold a special place in my heart but she is a bad actress.
The three best things that came out of this movie are:
1. A young Sherilyn Finn that was just a few years away from making us all fall in love with her on Twin Peaks.
2. Billy Jacoby (Jayne) who would go on to entertain us in the criminally forgotten Parker Lewis Can't Lose.
3. Another stellar villain performance from Billy Zabka. Just a Mount Rushmore 80's d-bag. He's the best.
His Girl Friday (1940) Hildy, the journalist former wife of newspaper editor Walter Burns, visits his office to inform him that she’s engaged and will be getting remarried the next day. Walter can’t let that happen and frames the fiancé, Bruce Baldwin, for one thing after another, to keep him temporarily held in prison, while trying to steer Hildy into returning to her old job as his employee.
Just a wonderful, fast talking, screwball romantic comedy. You can see why Hollywood has spent eight decades looking for more romantic comic leads like Cary Grant. His chemistry with Rosalind Russell is unassailable. Criterion Channel
In Cold Blood (1967) After a botched robbery results in the brutal murder of a rural family, two drifters elude police, in the end coming to terms with their own mortality and the repercussions of their vile atrocity.
Dark, shadowy, neo-noir telling of the Truman Capote novel. Robert Blake and Scott Wilson really live in the real life characters of Perry Smith and Dick Hickock. Robert Brooks direction is innovative and beautiful. The scene transitions going back and forth between the killers and their victims are stunning. Somehow Brooks actually makes you like these remorseless killers, if just for a brief moment. Criterion Channel
Just One Of The Guys (1985) When Terry Griffith loses her high school’s writing competition, she’s convinced that it’s because she’s a girl. So Terry decides to change high schools and pose as a boy to prove her point. Her brother, Buddy, helps her pass as a guy so well that she is soon making friends with the boys at school, including the attractive Rick, who becomes her new best friend. But her gender-swapping makes things difficult when she falls in love with him.
This is a classic case of a movie that you love as a horny 13 year old kid but when you watch it as an adult your realize just how bad it is. Joyce Hyser will always hold a special place in my heart but she is a bad actress.
The three best things that came out of this movie are:
1. A young Sherilyn Finn that was just a few years away from making us all fall in love with her on Twin Peaks.
2. Billy Jacoby (Jayne) who would go on to entertain us in the criminally forgotten Parker Lewis Can't Lose.
3. Another stellar villain performance from Billy Zabka. Just a Mount Rushmore 80's d-bag. He's the best.
Pluto TV
oh hell yeah! one of my fav 80's movies of all time! that big 'reveal' at the end is tattooed in my brain
and yeah, Zabka an awesome asshole in it! this, Karate Kid, Back to School, and shit, even his small role in European Vacation. Mount Rushmore 80's d-bag no doubt!
silly line my friends and i say when when spill food or a drink on ourselves.. 'but you look so nice today.. you looked perfect..' (scene with Terry n Rick in the bathroom haha)
great watch @fidoz - i own it so i may re-visit sooner than later.
Zombieland: Double Tap (2019) Columbus, Tallahassee, Wichita, and Little Rock move to the American heartland as they face off against evolved zombies, fellow survivors, and the growing pains of the snarky makeshift family.
It's a harmless funny sequel. Though it falls short of the original, the movie keeps you entertained with bloody kills and constant quips directed at Tallahassee and Columbus. Don't go looking for a real moral to this story just enjoy zombies being run over by farm equipment. Starz
The Daytrippers (1996) Eliza D’Amico thinks her marriage to Louis is going great, until she finds a mysterious love note to her husband. Concerned, she goes to her mother for advice. Eliza, her parents, her sister Jo and Jo’s boyfriend all pile into a station wagon, to go to the city to confront Louis with the letter. On the way, the five explore their relations with each other, and meet many interesting people.
There seemed to be a lot of these little indie movies in the 90's and I think Parker Posey was in 93% of them. This was a nice little one dayer with some excellent performances from the likes of Posey, Hope Davis, Liev Schrieber and Stanley Tucci. Criterion Channel
The Lobster (2015) In a dystopian near future, single people, according to the laws of The City, are taken to The Hotel, where they are obliged to find a romantic partner in forty-five days or are transformed into beasts and sent off into The Woods.
I call this movie a Benny and the Jets. It's weird and it's wonderful. Colin Farrell plays it straight and lets the wonderful script work its magic. He's sad. He's ruthless. He's broken. He's harsh. He's panicked and desperate all in the same two hours.
Art School Confidential (2006) Starting from childhood attempts at illustration, the protagonist pursues his true obsession to art school. But as he learns how the art world really works, he finds that he must adapt his vision to the reality that confronts him.
Man did this movie land with a thud. The world this movie exists in is full of cliches and caricatures but they're not used in a funny or absurd way like in a say, PCU. Instead they just reenforce the shallowness of this thinly fabricated world. The murder mystery B-plot is a complete throwaway and barely registers except to resolve the completely ludicrous ending. The love story never approaches anything within a marathon of emotion. Overall, the movie fails to register a fraction of the creativity and feeling of Zwigoff's previous film, Ghost World.
Beastie Boys Story - Really fun and well made documentary. It takes a bit getting used to the format but once you're in to it the guys are very entertaining. It's must see for any Beasties fan.
Apple TV
watched this again this afternoon. so f'n good! shout out ATV+!
The Odd Couple (1968) In New York, Felix, a neurotic news writer who just broke up with his wife, is urged by his chaotic friend Oscar, a sports journalist, to move in with him, but their lifestyles are as different as night and day are, so Felix’s ideas about housekeeping soon begin to irritate Oscar.
I love Neil Simon. You add in Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau and you've got great comedy. The movie stays very true to Simon's play and is shot almost entirely in Oscar's apartment giving it the feel of a stage production. The dialogue is crisp and the performances live up to the material. Starz
I started the year out rededicating myself to my love of movies. I set the target at trying to see 240 movies this year. A combination of in the theater and streaming. With the theaters shutdown my consumption has increased greatly. With this development, I thought 500 was now attainable. i have reached 240 films on May 17th. I now think my final number will be between 600 and 700.
Sabrina (1954) Linus and David Larrabee are the two sons of a very wealthy family. Linus is all work – busily running the family corporate empire, he has no time for a wife and family. David is all play – technically he is employed by the family business, but never shows up for work, spends all his time entertaining, and has been married and divorced three times. Meanwhile, Sabrina Fairchild is the young, shy, and awkward daughter of the household chauffeur, who goes away to Paris for two years, and returns to capture David’s attention, while falling in love with Linus.
This is another classic Billy Wilder/William Holden collaboration. Although, Holden is firmly in a supporting role here to Humphrey Bogart and Audrey Hepburn.
Hepburn is delightfully magical in her transformation from the school girl chauffeur's daughter into the elegant Parisian world traveler. The romance between Linus and Sabrina never really lands and the age difference between Bogart and Hepburn seems more insurmountable that it even plays in the film. William Holden's David keeps the film floating with his comic relief.
Not enough can be said about this films art direction, set and costume designs. Wilder and his team had a tremendous eye for fashion and classic modern design.
Mikey and Nicky (1976) In Philadelphia, a small-time bookie who stole mob money is in hiding and he begs a childhood friend to help him evade the hit-man who’s on his trail.
The tag line "Don't expect to like 'em" is right. This is a desperate night of terrible men doing terrible things. Nicky (John Cassavetes) is deranged and in crisis as he runs from the mob. He calls the only person in the world he trusts (or does he) right now Mikey (Peter Falk).
Cassavetes and Falk, who worked together frequently, have great chemistry in the film. There is never any question that these guys have known each other and been through the rackets together for many years. For as great as Cassavetes is in his feverish, paranoid performance, Falk is right there with him. Mikey (Falk) is tasked with being the voice of reason trying to bend Nicky to his will.
Even when the action on the screen takes a pause the film never slows down. The plot as the night pushes through and as the night grows longer and longer the mob assassin (Ned Beatty) gets closer and closer.
The Spy Who Came In From The Cold (1965) British agent Alec Leamas refuses to come in from the Cold War during the 1960s, choosing to face another mission, which may prove to be his final one.
I may just be a mark for this genre. I love traditional spy movies and the cold war. I mean as I watched this movie I could see a 500 page book named The Cold War next to my television.
It's a shame alcoholism prevented Richard Burton from fulfilling the promise of his talent. When he's on there are few who are on his level. He's definitely on in this adaptation of John Le Carre's novel of the same name.
Becket (1964) King Henry II of England has trouble with the Church. When the Archbishop of Canterbury dies, he has a brilliant idea. Rather than appoint another pious cleric loyal to Rome and the Church, he will appoint his old drinking and wenching buddy, Thomas Becket, technically a deacon of the church, to the post. Unfortunately, Becket takes the job seriously and provides abler opposition to Henry.
This is one of those great British productions where you get two classically trained theater actors just going at it. Here you have Peter O'Toole (Henry II) and Richard Burton (Thomas Becket) just chewing up scenery like they haven't eaten a meal in a month.
O'Toole is exquisite as Henry. He perfectly the real life Henry's penchant for having a short temper and using that temper to bully those around him.
Burton equals O'Toole as the former rapscallion turned earnest follower of God. There is a love between the two men that can't be denied but also a rift that can't be closed.
Mystify: Michael Hutchence (2019) Michael Hutchence was flying high as the lead singer of the legendary rock band INXS until his untimely death in 1997. Richard Lowenstein’s documentary examines Hutchence’s deeply felt life through his many loves and demons.
Excellent documentary that sheds some light on the circumstances that led to Michael Hutchence's life unravelling and his untimely death. The doc is beautifully made with plenty of input from those who were closest to him. Amazon Prime
From IMDb: "A pair of teenage girls in rural Pennsylvania travel to New York City to seek out medical help after an unintended pregnancy." This is a tough watch, both for its deliberate slow and gruelling pace, and for the bullshit hoops that the poor protagonist has to jump through in order to make a sensible decision for her future. So honest and authentic in its execution that it doesn't really even feel like a film, just a showcasing of completely believable and relatable events. I'm making a habit recently of watching films that are powerful, but not that enjoyable to watch.
Patton Oswalt: I love Everything (2020) Marc Maron: End Times Fun (2020)
I just watched both of these new standup specials and highly recommend both. They are unfortunately connect is a cosmic kind of way. Maron's girlfriend Lynn Shelton, who directed the special, died unexpectedly on Saturday. Patton Oswalt's wife died suddenly a few year ago. Netflix
From IMDb: "A pair of teenage girls in rural Pennsylvania travel to New York City to seek out medical help after an unintended pregnancy." This is a tough watch, both for its deliberate slow and gruelling pace, and for the bullshit hoops that the poor protagonist has to jump through in order to make a sensible decision for her future. So honest and authentic in its execution that it doesn't really even feel like a film, just a showcasing of completely believable and relatable events. I'm making a habit recently of watching films that are powerful, but not that enjoyable to watch.
One of the most uncomfortable and infuriating watches I’ve had in awhile, but two really good performances from the leads. Best movie I’ve seen this year, so far.
From IMDb: "A pair of teenage girls in rural Pennsylvania travel to New York City to seek out medical help after an unintended pregnancy." This is a tough watch, both for its deliberate slow and gruelling pace, and for the bullshit hoops that the poor protagonist has to jump through in order to make a sensible decision for her future. So honest and authentic in its execution that it doesn't really even feel like a film, just a showcasing of completely believable and relatable events. I'm making a habit recently of watching films that are powerful, but not that enjoyable to watch.
One of the most uncomfortable and infuriating watches I’ve had in awhile, but two really good performances from the leads. Best movie I’ve seen this year, so far.
The longer I sit with it, the more impressive I find it.
Like the janky 'clinic' she goes to in her town. I thought at the time that the 10 week evaluation was just incompetence on their part, but I think I realise now that they gave her a false early diagnosis to make her think she had more time to make a decision. With the hope that by the time she had decided on abortion, it would have been too late. Wild. They did such a good job of making that place feel wrong before it was proven to be so.
Comments
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWHJTvzC-Qo
Pretty much standard "I love working with this guy" documentary fare. If you're a big Linklater fan though, it's pretty much a must see.
Pluto TV
From IMDb: "The 47-year old Al Capone, after 10 years in prison, starts suffering from dementia and comes to be haunted by his violent past."
This is a weird one. It's like all of the pieces are there, but nobody ever bothers to put them in place. Tom Hardy gets a little bit too lost in a dementia ridden Al Capone to actually make the character engaging to watch, it's just a lot of staring into the middle distance and subtitle requiring mumbling. After all the Capone related media we've had over the years, this seemed like it would provide a refreshingly different take, but the execution wasn't up to scratch in my opinion. The whole thing feels very muddled, which of course could be a deliberate choice to display Capone's decreasing cognisance, but it doesn't make for very enjoyable watching.
This is a pleasant little indie that pays homage not only to the character in the movie but to its star as well. Talk show appearances and movie clips from Burt Reynolds career are interspersed to give a weight to the character Vic being a real aging movie star.
Amazon Prime
This movie is quite out there and crosses the line to ridiculous from time to time. However, it never ceases to be a really entertaining political thriller. Jessica Chastain carries the film like a true movie star.
Amazon Prime
This is a classic case of a movie that you love as a horny 13 year old kid but when you watch it as an adult your realize just how bad it is. Joyce Hyser will always hold a special place in my heart but she is a bad actress.
Pluto TV
Just a wonderful, fast talking, screwball romantic comedy. You can see why Hollywood has spent eight decades looking for more romantic comic leads like Cary Grant. His chemistry with Rosalind Russell is unassailable.
Criterion Channel
Dark, shadowy, neo-noir telling of the Truman Capote novel. Robert Blake and Scott Wilson really live in the real life characters of Perry Smith and Dick Hickock. Robert Brooks direction is innovative and beautiful. The scene transitions going back and forth between the killers and their victims are stunning. Somehow Brooks actually makes you like these remorseless killers, if just for a brief moment.
Criterion Channel
It's a harmless funny sequel. Though it falls short of the original, the movie keeps you entertained with bloody kills and constant quips directed at Tallahassee and Columbus. Don't go looking for a real moral to this story just enjoy zombies being run over by farm equipment.
Starz
There seemed to be a lot of these little indie movies in the 90's and I think Parker Posey was in 93% of them. This was a nice little one dayer with some excellent performances from the likes of Posey, Hope Davis, Liev Schrieber and Stanley Tucci.
Criterion Channel
I call this movie a Benny and the Jets. It's weird and it's wonderful. Colin Farrell plays it straight and lets the wonderful script work its magic. He's sad. He's ruthless. He's broken. He's harsh. He's panicked and desperate all in the same two hours.
Netflix
Man did this movie land with a thud. The world this movie exists in is full of cliches and caricatures but they're not used in a funny or absurd way like in a say, PCU. Instead they just reenforce the shallowness of this thinly fabricated world. The murder mystery B-plot is a complete throwaway and barely registers except to resolve the completely ludicrous ending. The love story never approaches anything within a marathon of emotion. Overall, the movie fails to register a fraction of the creativity and feeling of Zwigoff's previous film, Ghost World.
Amazon Prime
I love Neil Simon. You add in Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau and you've got great comedy. The movie stays very true to Simon's play and is shot almost entirely in Oscar's apartment giving it the feel of a stage production. The dialogue is crisp and the performances live up to the material.
Starz
This is another classic Billy Wilder/William Holden collaboration. Although, Holden is firmly in a supporting role here to Humphrey Bogart and Audrey Hepburn.
Pluto TV
The tag line "Don't expect to like 'em" is right. This is a desperate night of terrible men doing terrible things. Nicky (John Cassavetes) is deranged and in crisis as he runs from the mob. He calls the only person in the world he trusts (or does he) right now Mikey (Peter Falk).
Criterion Channel
I may just be a mark for this genre. I love traditional spy movies and the cold war. I mean as I watched this movie I could see a 500 page book named The Cold War next to my television.
Amazon Prime
This is one of those great British productions where you get two classically trained theater actors just going at it. Here you have Peter O'Toole (Henry II) and Richard Burton (Thomas Becket) just chewing up scenery like they haven't eaten a meal in a month.
Hoopla
Excellent documentary that sheds some light on the circumstances that led to Michael Hutchence's life unravelling and his untimely death. The doc is beautifully made with plenty of input from those who were closest to him.
Amazon Prime
From IMDb: "A pair of teenage girls in rural Pennsylvania travel to New York City to seek out medical help after an unintended pregnancy."
This is a tough watch, both for its deliberate slow and gruelling pace, and for the bullshit hoops that the poor protagonist has to jump through in order to make a sensible decision for her future. So honest and authentic in its execution that it doesn't really even feel like a film, just a showcasing of completely believable and relatable events. I'm making a habit recently of watching films that are powerful, but not that enjoyable to watch.
Marc Maron: End Times Fun (2020)
I just watched both of these new standup specials and highly recommend both. They are unfortunately connect is a cosmic kind of way. Maron's girlfriend Lynn Shelton, who directed the special, died unexpectedly on Saturday. Patton Oswalt's wife died suddenly a few year ago.
Netflix