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[AngmarsKing701]

The Void (2016) - the fuck did I just watch. Bizarre. Utterly batshit bizarre. We got possession, reanimation, alien portals, netherworld demons, some rubber-ass tentacle organ sucking skull-fucked up weird thing and just about everyone yelling their lines at each other. We're supposed to give two fucks about the cop and the nurse because they're married but it's apparently not terribly obvious until late. They've also lost a kid via miscarriage at some point but it's revealed way too late, past the point where it should make a difference to how you would feel about the characters.

I mean, this thing is a hot mess. I'm trying to determine if there's a single thing I'd put on the positive side of this. I guess the first two minutes is pretty good. It's fucked up but it's a great stage-setter ... and absolutely nothing of consequence came after that stood up to that opening scene.

1 / 5

 

[Snowman Prophet of Doom]

Blue Valentine really is pretty fucking good. Not great, but one wishes we could have more of this kind of thing.

 

[Head of Vengarl]

The Good, the Bad, the Weird

It's like a combination of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (obviously), Mad Max, and some sequences that really reminded me of Pirates of the Caribbean. In other words, it was fucking great. The plot was pretty thin, but it made up for it by being tons of fun to watch. Highly recommend giving this a watch if you have Netflix.

 

[UrbanRats]

Alien Covenant had many entertaining aspects, but it didn't really come together.
Like Prometheus, anything involving production design and visuals, was absolutely magnificent.
Like Prometheus, anything involving the script was written by a certified moron.

Compared to it (which admittedly i haven't seen since it came out) it works a bit better because David is a good villain, comedic, too.
Still, character arcs go absolutely nowhere, and the characters themselves are barely established, before getting killed off in the dumbest possible ways (but the deaths are honestly fun to look at).
It's nice to see James Franco die in the first 2 minutes, but i could barely tell it was even him in the capsule, some characters die and i wasn't even sure if we had seen them talk before, even Red Shirts are given more respect than that.

And hey, i don't even mind the religious overtones, infact, i like them, to be honest... but you just couldn't find a better way for them to start spreading the pathogen, than to step on it like morons, or sniff nasty looking plants? This level of lazy writing is really something else.
Fuck, even the idiots in Prometheus wore suits when visiting an alien planet.
I mean never mind the super alien pathogen, you're not afraid of alien bacteria? The flu? Maybe none of the crew actually ever paid attention in history class.

Anyway, all in all the film was fun, though the evolution of events is weirdly anticlimactic, exactly because there are no meaningful arcs for anyone (but David?), and it's not very engaging when characters keep dying not because of a real threat, but just because they constantly do the dumbest possible thing at every turn.
Finally,

Spoiler

the Xenomorph is released and disposed of, in a matter of minutes.

 

[Baroquemantic]

What Happened to Monday

That was pretty good. Kinda dumb, but I liked it.

7/10

 

[Messofanego]

Alien Covenant had many entertaining aspects, but it didn't really come together.
Like Prometheus, anything involving production design and visuals, was absolutely magnificent.
Like Prometheus, anything involving the script was written by a certified moron.

Compared to it (which admittedly i haven't seen since it came out) it works a bit better because David is a good villain, comedic, too.
Still, character arcs go absolutely nowhere, and the characters themselves are barely established, before getting killed off in the dumbest possible ways (but the deaths are honestly fun to look at).
It's nice to see James Franco die in the first 2 minutes, but i could barely tell it was even him in the capsule, some characters die and i wasn't even sure if we had seen them talk before, even Red Shirts are given more respect than that.

And hey, i don't even mind the religious overtones, infact, i like them, to be honest... but you just couldn't find a better way for them to start spreading the pathogen, than to step on it like morons, or sniff nasty looking plants? This level of lazy writing is really something else.
Fuck, even the idiots in Prometheus wore suits when visiting an alien planet.
I mean never mind the super alien pathogen, you're not afraid of alien bacteria? The flu? Maybe none of the crew actually ever paid attention in history class.

Anyway, all in all the film was fun, though the evolution of events is weirdly anticlimactic, exactly because there are no meaningful arcs for anyone (but David?), and it's not very engaging when characters keep dying not because of a real threat, but just because they constantly do the dumbest possible thing at every turn.
Finally,

Spoiler

the Xenomorph is released and disposed of, in a matter of minutes.

How was the shower sex death? Are the deaths at least fun to watch in a trashy way like Nightmare on Elm Street or Jason?

 

[UrbanRats]

What Happened to Monday

That was pretty good. Kinda dumb, but I liked it.

7/10

I'm annoyed that this isn't internationally distributed by Netflix.
Here it comes out in cinemas in like November, what's the point of these "Netflix Originals" if they can't even guarantee those, on a global schedule?
Then again Netflix seems to slap "Netflix Original" on anything.

How was the shower sex death? Are the deaths at least fun to watch in a trashy way like Nightmare on Elm Street or Jason?

Doesn't go where it suggests, so in that sense it's not as comical as i was hoping, but it still feels sort of out of place.
They're not super creative, but the effects are very well done for the most part (a couple of cgi moments were odd), and that makes them cool to look at.
For that reason it felt a bit more disturbing than other alien movies, tho it could just be my terrible memory.

 

[Messofanego]

Doesn't go where it suggests, so in that sense it's not as comical as i was hoping, but it still feels sort of out of place.
They're not super creative, but the effects are very well done for the most part (a couple of cgi moments were odd), and that makes them cool to look at.
For that reason it felt a bit more disturbing than other alien movies, tho it could just be my terrible memory.

Well, there goes any reason to watch it for at least a so bad it's good level.

 

[UrbanRats]

Well, there goes any reason to watch it for at least a so bad it's good level.

Yeah, it's definitely not that kind of film.
It can be funny (unintentionally? Intentionally? I can't tell) with Fassbender's interpretation of the androids, and some of the stupid shit, but doesn't go beyond that.

 

[Messofanego]

Yeah, it's definitely not that kind of film.
It can be funny (unintentionally? Intentionally? I can't tell) with Fassbender's interpretation of the androids, and some of the stupid shit, but doesn't go beyond that.

I heard something about a flute and got excited for entertaining dumbness. What a shame.

 

[Window]

The flute scene is actually playful/amusing in a good way and not dumb at all.

 

[Fancy Clown]

The flute scene is actually playful/amusing in a good way and not dumb at all.

Yeah it was the best scene in the movie imo

 

[Messofanego]

The flute scene is actually playful/amusing in a good way and not dumb at all.

Is it worth the price of admission alone?

 

[Ridley327]

The Final Terror: While I can't say what is exactly is so final about this terror, the goofy title masks a decent backwoods survival picture with some light slasher touches that thrives on its rather nice photography and having a young cast of future stars (Daryl Hannah! Rachel Ward! Joe Pantoliano! Adrian Zmed, I guess!) that do show their early promise here, if not quite at their fullest of ranges. One does get the sense that there really wasn't a lot of coverage shot here, no doubt due to the budget constraints, so the film can feel a bit patchy in terms of its construction on a scene-to-scene basis, though it isn't so rough that it muddies the intention. As I said, there are light slasher touches here, in that people get killed for having sex or doing illicit drugs, but there is a shocking level of restraint that they don't go overboard with any of those elements, and the body count being as low as it is manages to make those scenes of violence feel a lot more brutal and realistic when compared to its fellow counterparts. It culminates with a finale that has one of those kinds of twists that you'll figure out long before it happens, but not the kind where it ruins anything, with a deadly trap that doesn't go quite as expected (and aided by some rather inventive camerawork), leading to a surprisingly downbeat ending for a movie where most of the cast survives. It sure ain't no Just Before Dawn, but the appeal is obvious and it does well for itself with its modest ambitions and surprising care put into its technical qualities that puts it comfortably ahead most of the genre.

 

[TheExhaustedWalrus]

I saw Logan Lucky yesterday. I have to admit, I'm a novice when it comes to Soderbergh, but I really enjoyed the film. It's a pretty straightforward story, but the setting and characters make it something much more fun to experience than a typical heist caper. Each character is memorable/amusing in their own way, especially Clyde (Adam Driver), whose backstory is tragic while getting good comedic mileage out of his missing hand.

The plot kind of takes a backseat to style here, and unfortunately the characters or their motivations don't get explored deeply enough. The movie ebbs in and out of character development and heist setup, which is probably necessary, but the core of the story is Jimmy (Channing Tatum) and his daughter, which honestly falls the wayside until it's decided to wrap up near the film's end.

That being said, it's a good time. It moves the way a heist movie should and is littered with unique characters to keep you entertained.

3.5/5

 

[Fancy Clown]

Schindler's List: There's definitely some tension at play here between the documentary-like realism and the classical Hollywood stylings that Spielberg is known for (most jarring during a couple suspense sequences), but it's impossible to deny how affecting the film is.

Its greatest strength is in how it characterizes both Schindler and Goeth, because by sketching both men as having contradictory, intensely human qualities it renders both their respective heroism and sadism as all the more powerful. The holocaust is an intrinsically inhuman tragedy, but by inserting human stories into film that looks to replicate the real life footage many have seen of the atrocities, Spielberg forces you to identify with the violence on an intimate scale, which I found to be utterly chilling and no small part of why the movie is so powerful.

I can certainly see why this film might be troubling from a representational standpoint (the shower scene in particular, even though it is a technically outstanding suspense sequence, feels the most like a misstep), but I think ultimately its mission of attaching a deep sense of empathy to those that experienced, and even purpotrated, the atrocities is a noble one because it puts the unthinkable abstract into sharp, horrifying relief. If using a few old Hollywood tricks to manipulate the viewers' heartstrings is what it takes, then I think Spielberg can be proud of what he accomplished here.

I took a great course in college about representations of genocide and memory of genocide through film, but surprisingly we never saw this movie. I'm glad I finally did though. In addition to being a fascinating piece of representation it feels like a major turning point in Spielberg's career, and it was quite something to see his Hollywood entertainer stylings wrestling with his "grander" ambitions on such a scale here.

Is it worth the price of admission alone?

Probably not, but I found there to be plenty of other things to recommend that make it worth it. As long as you go in expecting a beautiful gothic B movie that's an intriguing mess of ideas that range from misguided and bafflingly stupid, to surprisingly engaging. There's plenty of ineptitude but I found it a far more entertaining and interesting failure than Prometheus.

 

[Window]

Is it worth the price of admission alone?

I think Fassbender makes Covenant worth watching.

 

[UrbanRats]

I think Fassbender makes Covenant worth watching.

I would've rather they focused the movie around him and his brother completely, instead of having the pointless crew, though i guess you can argue they actually do that, since he's the only interesting person on screen.

Also, given how fucking stupid these crews are, it's just better if they start sending out just androids from now on.

Probably not, but I found there to be plenty of other things to recommend that make it worth it. As long as you go in expecting a beautiful gothic B movie that's an intriguing mess of ideas that range from misguided and bafflingly stupid, to surprisingly engaging. There's plenty of ineptitude but I found it a far more entertaining and interesting failure than Prometheus.

I kinda want to rewatch Prometheus to make sure, but i also agree with this.
This movie had more moments where my interest was genuinely piqued (most to do with David, again) than Prometheus did.
Disclaimer tho: I at least "kind of like" all of the Alien movies, even the ones people hate (like 3 and 4).

I mean Prometheus was so bad, but i think that was also worth watching for the production design alone, so YMMV.

I'll also play Devil's advocate and say that i'll cut more slack to a movie that takes itself seriously, than some "self aware" throwback thing that relies on the inherent cowardice of irony to get by unchecked.
So in that sense, i still appreciate on some level the earnest (if senile) attempts of Ridley Scott, and i wish he hadn't gone for the slasher angle at all, but doubled down on his fixations instead.
He keeps revisiting all his past successes, but you can see the battle between the bollocks homage, and the "new ideas" in them.

 

[Sean C]

Logan Lucky (2017): Steven Soderbergh returns from "retirement" to direct this Appalachia-set caper comedy. The rhythms of the film are remarkably gentle, compared to a typical example of the genre (including Soderbergh's own previous entries, e.g., the Ocean's films). It's also rather rare for films set in this milieu in that there's never any sense that's it's sneering at its white trash subjects. The final fifteen minutes or so

Spoiler

contain a really unnecessary (and, to an extent, easy to see coming) twist that I don't think adds much to the film

.

 

[Peco]

Logan Lucky (2017): Steven Soderbergh returns from "retirement" to direct this Appalachia-set caper comedy. The rhythms of the film are remarkably gentle, compared to a typical example of the genre (including Soderbergh's own previous entries, e.g., the Ocean's films). It's also rather rare for films set in this milieu in that there's never any sense that's it's sneering at its white trash subjects. The final fifteen minutes or so

Spoiler

contain a really unnecessary (and, to an extent, easy to see coming) twist that I don't think adds much to the film

.

How's my boy Adam Driver in this?

 

[witchedwiz]

old man logn: solid i guess.. some small parts i didn't like.. too many liberties from the "canon" story.. but w/e.. acting and pacing was fine

alien: covenant: ehm.. pass..

arrival: SPECTACULAR film really.. the music is lacking to forgettable, but the rest of the film was REALLY good.. both scenario writing per se and direction

 

[Sean C]

How's my boy Adam Driver in this?

Dependably solid, though the role is not one that stretches his range.

 

[swoon]

i don't think anyone has ever called charlotte appalachia before.

 

[zoukka]

Baby Driver! The good parts were amazing, genius in fact! But I can't be the only one thinking there was too little driving in the movie, not just because the title, but how well shot the driving scenes were. The movie fell a bit flat towards the end and I didn't really enjoy the ending... the relentless pacing took a hit there.

Must see movie in my books even though it's flawed, I had a huge grin on my face furing the action parts.

 

[Sean C]

i don't think anyone has ever called charlotte appalachia before.

I guess the actual caper is outside Appalachia, but the characters are from there.

EDIT - wait, never mind, I was getting confused about the geography of the characters driving around.

 

[HollowCentral]

arrival: SPECTACULAR film really.. the music is lacking to forgettable, but the rest of the film was REALLY good.. both scenario writing per se and direction

After seeing this, I trust Denis with Blade Runner.

 

[Puck Beaverton]

Logan Lucky (2017): Steven Soderbergh returns from "retirement" to direct this Appalachia-set caper comedy. The rhythms of the film are remarkably gentle, compared to a typical example of the genre (including Soderbergh's own previous entries, e.g., the Ocean's films). It's also rather rare for films set in this milieu in that there's never any sense that's it's sneering at its white trash subjects. The final fifteen minutes or so

Spoiler

contain a really unnecessary (and, to an extent, easy to see coming) twist that I don't think adds much to the film

.

Yeah that's my only critique of the movie. Was so glad to see it resemble The Informant!. Driver and Craig were great. Waterston is my waifu and MacFarlane's accent was terrible.

 

[lordxar]

From a House on Willow Street Saw this on Netflix and gave it a shot. Surprisingly good even though the second half falters a bit with some piss poor cgi and a seemingly empty budget by this point. I did like it overall though and would recommend it for any possession needs come October list time. It's a b movie through and through but has some interesting ideas.

The Girl with All the Gifts I know some here didn't like the ending but I loved it and overall I thought this was pretty amazing! Very, very....yea very much Last of Us vibes. When their rolling through the overgrown city I kept thinking damn I played on that street and fought in that building. The only thing you didn't have was regular human foes. Everything was a Hungry variation but given the

Spoiler

ending

its extremely appropriate. There were some flaws here and there but overall this was very engaging and very well done.

 

[swoon]

I guess the actual caper is outside Appalachia, but the characters are from there.

EDIT - wait, never mind, I was getting confused about the geography of the characters driving around.

the weird thing about people using appalachia instead of just the south is that like pittsburgh is in appalachia and southern tier area of new york state.

anyway, i'm from charlotte, so i'm excited to see how weird his version of the area is. him being kind to southern folk shouldn't be that shocking, though. he's from georgia.

 

[jtb]

Logan Lucky is definitely 'about' Appalachia, even if the heist isn't set there. Channing Tatum literally plays a coal miner from West Virginia.

 

[True Savior]

The Third Man - Carol Reed

The classiest of the thrillers. From the initial melody to Anna walking down the frame and leaving Holly hanging, The Third Man is as I once read "the perfect blend of sleaziness and poetry". Although aesthetically revered it's quite defining to it's qualities how most of it merely two people talking with each other, just varying the character, the location and the amount of information we keep unraveling.

 

[Divius]

Back after a short vacation, let the movie watching continue!

Baywatch

Boob count: 0
Penis count: 1

4/10

 

[Ridley327]

Logan Lucky: Perhaps no one could describe this film better than the film does itself, as one news report refers to the caper perpetrated here as "Ocean's 7-11." That should give you an idea of the tone that they're going for here: light, breezy and nothing but good vibes for all. Unlike the bajillion dollar star-studded extravaganzas of Steve Soderbergh's trilogy, things take on a decidedly more homespun bend here, both in terms of the type of characters, the setting and the stakes. Sure, it has well-known actors playing a lot of these parts, but at the risk of underselling the capabilities of both Channing Tatum and Adam Driver, they're no George Clooney or Matt Damon, and Daniel Craig is better known for the role he inherited than being an actor-actor to most. Nevertheless, all three, plus everyone else in the cast (including a couple of great surprises I won't dare spoil) are having a lot of great fun with the material that's been given to them here. And it's surprisingly intelligent and thoughtful material, too: I had feared that the focus on citizens of Rust Belt states would lean too heavily on mockery, especially in light of recent political quagmires, but outside of two comic relief characters that are just plain stupid for any walk of life, Soderbergh doesn't even attempt to give into the temptation of feeling superior to this motley crew, and even manages to surprise often with how careful and educated that most of the gang turns out to be (my favorite scene of this in action involves how something with the most improbable ingredients could hope to make an explosive device). That differentiating factor really helps the film soar, as everyone is just so damn likable that helps make the convoluted plan really easy to buy into, even after complications arise and the venue becomes a lot bigger than they bargained for. All the usual Soderbergh touches are present, and with the setting being far less fanciful than the likes of Vegas, Soderbergh is really able to capture the local flavor, feeling rather genuine even with the sharp photography and intriguing lighting choices that they seldom enjoy outside of film. The film doesn't quite blow past the usual cliches in the structure of heist comedies, including the requisite "real master plan" reveal that these things always have, but I don't feel it needed to, as the characters and the setting give it an advantage in a genre usually known for more luxurious digs and movie star-looking movie stars. That little shift, aided by the game cast, really sells the film as the highly entertaining romp that it succeeds at being. Welcome back, Steve: we were almost starting to miss you.

 

[HollowCentral]

Back after a short vacation, let the movie watching continue!

Baywatch

Boob count: 0
Penis count: 1

4/10

Yeah, that sounds about right

 

[Baroquemantic]

House on Willow Street

This movie is straight garbage. Don't know why I even bothered to watch it all the way to the end considering it put me to sleep partway in.

1/10

 

[HollowCentral]

Field of Dreams is alright. I didn't love it, but it was fine. Didn't really do anything for me though.

Easily the best thing about this film is the story. It's interesting and touches on a lot of issues that defined the time it was made in. The direction and cinematography are pretty solid, as is most of the acting. James Earl Jones in particular does a great job, and the film really picks up once he shows up. and Kevin Costner is good as well, though I've never found him to be extremely charismatic, but he's good.

The biggest problem is that it feels like you need to be a fan of baseball to really enjoy this film, and because I am not, a lot of the people and events mentioned have no significance to me. And the script feels poorly adapted at times, where you can really tell that this was based on a book, and it feels cheesy occasionally as well. Plus the child actor annoyed they hell out of me.

Ultimately, this just doesn't feel like a film that was made for me. I did enjoy it - just not enough to feel like I need to see it again.

7/10

 

[Icolin]

Saw a bunch of movies on a 12 hour flight from Vancouver to China.

Lost City of Z

Really liked it when I first saw it, but rewatching it makes me realize that Charlie Hunnam is way better in it than I first thought. Other than that revelation, everything's still the same; great cinematography and set design, brilliant music, and a thoroughly engaging story.

Cars

I liked it. Nowhere near Pixar's top stuff, but it's certainly better than its (mediocre) sequels.

Power Rangers (2017)

Meh. Competently made and there's some cool twists here and there, but it's disposable. Perfect movie for flights.

Black Swan

The best movie of 2010, by a pretty large margin. Watching the Mila + Natalie scene caught me some side eye from my fellow passengers though.

Avengers: Age of Ultron

Was thoroughly let down by it when I first saw it in theatres, and it's still not a great movie, but there's some fantastic sequences here and there.

 

[Messofanego]

Glad to hear Logan Lucky is really good. I kinda still want Soderbergh to make another absurdist comedy after Schizopolis before he actually retires. It's just so damn quotable and memorable on top of being imaginative. I think he's still got the cache to go balls-out weird.

 

[smisk]

Surprised Logan Lucky is getting such a good reception. The trailer made it look like a dumb redneck comedy to me, but I might check it out once my moviepass card gets here.

 

[HollowCentral]

Surprised Logan Lucky is getting such a good reception. The trailer made it look like a dumb redneck comedy to me, but I might check it out once my moviepass card gets here.

It almost looked like a parody of those kinds of movies to me when I first saw the trailer.

 

[Ridley327]

Surprised Logan Lucky is getting such a good reception. The trailer made it look like a dumb redneck comedy to me, but I might check it out once my moviepass card gets here.

I'm not really sure what Soderbergh was thinking with the advertising, but the film has a much kinder soul than the trailers let on.

 

[hampig]

Watched some interesting stuff the last few days.

Sadako Vs Kayako:
This got some mild praise, which shocked me, so I decided I had to give it a chance. It was... bad. Super slow pacing, uninteresting characters, dumb story. It was cheesy, but not cheesy enough to be funny. There were some pretty good spooky moments, but that's about it.

The Belladonna Of Sadness:
One of the most unique movies I've ever seen. It went between interesting, disturbing, and boring. Because of the unique style and mostly effective visuals alone I recommend it, but it definitely felt like a 45 minute movie stretched into double that.

Reincarnation (2005):
I read a review saying that Reincarnation had one of the best endings of all time. I'm deeply confused by that notion. It was average to the core. Also now #1 on my list of movies that try to scare you every 5 seconds. The one decent part was the doll. I hate dolls.

The Founder:
I really enjoyed this one. It left me feeling pretty bummed out and definitely put another bullet point on the "reasons to not go to McDonalds" list though. Regardless, there's some excellent acting, great pacing, and an interesting story here.

Bonus TV - Channel Zero:
I have mixed feelings on this. I love the way it looks, the premise seems alright, but the acting just doesn't sell it to me. I only watched the first episode, but I really want it to be good. Is it worth going on?

 

[AngmarsKing701]

Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014) - wow I watched the full 145 minutes of this clusterfuck. This movie is ass. There were actually parts in the first couple of these movies that I liked quite a bit, or where I geeked out something fierce, but there are zero moments in this one. Humans in these movies are just a complete waste of time and energy. And what the fuck is up with Bay and making sure his teeny bopper chicks are all hot and somehow make it through the entire movie with their makeup and lipstick perfectly applied? This is explosion porn. It's terrible one liners that are supposed to redeem people who have been absolute cunts the entire time. It's bad. Very bad. I figured I'd watch it before Last Knight hits redbox but I've heard that one's worse and so I think I'll just ignore these from now on.

0.5 / 5 because Letterboxd wouldn't let me give it a zero.

 

[kevin1025]

Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014) - wow I watched the full 145 minutes of this clusterfuck. This movie is ass. There were actually parts in the first couple of these movies that I liked quite a bit, or where I geeked out something fierce, but there are zero moments in this one. Humans in these movies are just a complete waste of time and energy. And what the fuck is up with Bay and making sure his teeny bopper chicks are all hot and somehow make it through the entire movie with their makeup and lipstick perfectly applied? This is explosion porn. It's terrible one liners that are supposed to redeem people who have been absolute cunts the entire time. It's bad. Very bad. I figured I'd watch it before Last Knight hits redbox but I've heard that one's worse and so I think I'll just ignore these from now on.

0.5 / 5 because Letterboxd wouldn't let me give it a zero.

It's the only movie to give me an unbelievably massive headache. I still get depressed thinking of all the burgers I could have bought out of that $17.25 IMAX ticket.

 

[HollowCentral]

Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014) - wow I watched the full 145 minutes of this clusterfuck. This movie is ass. There were actually parts in the first couple of these movies that I liked quite a bit, or where I geeked out something fierce, but there are zero moments in this one. Humans in these movies are just a complete waste of time and energy. And what the fuck is up with Bay and making sure his teeny bopper chicks are all hot and somehow make it through the entire movie with their makeup and lipstick perfectly applied? This is explosion porn. It's terrible one liners that are supposed to redeem people who have been absolute cunts the entire time. It's bad. Very bad. I figured I'd watch it before Last Knight hits redbox but I've heard that one's worse and so I think I'll just ignore these from now on.

0.5 / 5 because Letterboxd wouldn't let me give it a zero.

Believe me, Last Knight is WAY worse

 

[Messofanego]

The Belladonna Of Sadness:
One of the most unique movies I've ever seen. It went between interesting, disturbing, and boring. Because of the unique style and mostly effective visuals alone I recommend it, but it definitely felt like a 45 minute movie stretched into double that.

I should check out this psychosexual animated weirdness.

 

[Window]

Schizopolis is great but also kind of sad and depressing in a way which I think is not justified.

 

[Snowman Prophet of Doom]

I watched Satantango in one sitting like a goddamned man, and it was incredible. Prob my least fave Tarr movie, in some ways, but one of the most singular things in all of world cinema.

 

[Blader]

A few reviews from the last two weekends.

Wind River
Pretty strong directorial debut from Taylor Sheridan. I think I probably enjoyed Sicario and Hell or High Water a little more, but this is almost good and, in some ways, better written. I particularly liked how they subvert expectations around

Spoiler

Jon Bernthal's character

. Elizabeth Olsen's FBI agent feels undercooked not unlike Emily Blunt's character in Sicario, which is a little disappointing, but Renner puts in a good performance and Sheridan serves the overall setting very well -- you don't see too many snowy neo-Westerns on Native American reservations. Loved the Nick Cave/Warren Ellis score.
7/10

Song to Song
Of Malick's post-Tree of Life films, this is probably his best, but I think that's owed entirely to the strength of Mara, Gosling, and Fassbender's performances, who manage to stand out among the whispered ruminations of what is love and what is life in a way where other Malick leads (e.g. Ben Affleck in To The Wonder) would just tend to fade into the background. At its core the movie is about a love triangle that is never quite elaborated on, that dissolves and splits off into three separate relationships before converging back again, which has a subtly epic scope that is certainly more ambitious than the two films preceding it. There's a really bizarre coterie of people running through this film -- Patti Smith, Flea, Val Kilmer, some guy running metal through his fucking nose that I hated watching. And Fassbender acts like he was drunk off his ass the entire time. But even if I'm starting to get a little tired of the Malickisms -- characters eyeing each other warily behind their back as they slowly circle around each other, all shot at the 'magic hour' -- this, at least, manages to hit just a little harder than To the Wonder and Knight of Cups entirely thanks to its three leads.
6/10

Bright Lights: Starring Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds
A hilarious time capsule and love letter to mother and daughter's personal and professional relationships with each other. Also a real treat of cinema history, tracing through Debbie Reynolds' career and the other stars, films, etc. she overlapped with. This movie does make her death last year far less surprising, though, given how poorly and rapidly her physical health was deteriorating. One of the big takeaways for me is that it's such a fucking shame I only discovered how funny Carrie Fisher is so late in her life. This will make you miss her even more, but it's a real good watch.
8/10

The Grand Duel
Called by some as the last great Lee Van Cleef spaghetti western, which I guess illustrates how low the bar had fallen by 1972. Directed by Giancarlo Santi, who had been an AD on The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, Once Upon a Time in the West, and Duck You Sucker (and was actually supposed to direct Sucker at one point), the movie does kick off with a captivating Leone-ish opening. It's very misleading though, because once the bullets start flying, the tone abruptly shifts partly into wacky-high-jinks territory, not unlike Sabata (a late-period Van Cleef western that I hated), and never really bounces back from that tonal whiplash. And while Van Cleef is technically the star of the film, a lot of the action and plot is driven by Peter O'Brien who just...sucks. The plot moves in fits and starts, and there's lot of stuff around O'Brien's father and three evil brothers and their father, and it all gets pretty muddled pretty quickly.

All in all it's a pretty weak spaghetti western that doesn't hang together very well, but does have a few good things going for it: Van Cleef; a killer theme (which was lifted for Kill Bill); a great, really well-staged final shootout (like the opening, this also feels very Leone-esque); and something I've never seen before in a spaghetti western: a black-and-white scene! And it looks really great! It's so much better looking than almost the entire rest of the movie that it makes me think it was done by a different director. The ending, which incorporates that black and white scene similarly to how Leone integrated Harmonica's flashbacks into the climax of Once Upon a Time in the West, is so well done that it lifts the movie by a full point for me. Shame about all the rest that comes before it.
5/10

 

[Switch Back 9]

Finally watched Guardians 2.

Loved it. Much funnier than the first one, Drax was godamn hilarious.

Also teared up a little bit near the end when

Spoiler

Yondu died

. Didn't see that coming.

Also, end-credits stinger

Spoiler

ADAM FUCKING WARLOCK SON!! WOO