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What Was The Last Movie You Watched and Rate it!

One of my faves, I have a few editions of it. We even went to LA for a Lebowski Fest which was a fantastic time, got to watch it at a grand old theater, a few stars from the film were there, lots of people dressed up!

The movie is so good, so many quotables, and you really have to see it several times to catch all the nuances. And I highly recommend watching it while stoned.

There is an amazing Lebowski pinball machine out there, I have yet to play it, but it looks amazing.

That would be amazing! How fun.
 
Lebowski Fest is dead, but there is the Achiever Fest.


Lousville. *sigh* I would have loved to visit there a yr or 2 ago, I had a wonderful friend there that passed last yr. I hadnt seen her in ages but she always sent me Kentucky Derby memorabilia. She would have gotten a kick out of it too.
 
A reissue of Dune Part I (rereleased in anticipation of the coming release of Part II).

Saw it in a theater with 4K projection and Dolby Atmos sound.

Exquisite. There's no other word for it.
 
A reissue of Dune Part I (rereleased in anticipation of the coming release of Part II).

Saw it in a theater with 4K projection and Dolby Atmos sound.

Exquisite. There's no other word for it.
i've never seen dune
guess i am in for treat
of course, when my wife learned i had never watched the matrix movies, i was expected to do so. i was also anticipating greatness ... not so much

the hill [netflix] looked like it might be worth a watch
fortunately, i like baseball (not so much baseball movies) and this held my attention despite the obvious intent to tug at heartstrings, and the extra helping of evangelical life in the 70s
5/10 is being gracious
pass, unless you are into baseball or southern evangelical culture
 
i've never seen dune
guess i am in for treat
If you are unfamiliar with the story, a little bit of background might help you follow the story better.

Are you at all familiar with the Battlestar Galactica reboot that was on TV back in 2004-2008?


of course, when my wife learned i had never watched the matrix movies, i was expected to do so. i was also anticipating greatness ... not so much
The first movie was good.

The second and third were vastly improved by the Dezionized fanedit.
 
The Marvels, now streaming on Disney+

I am a Marvel franchise fan. Was really disappointed here. It didnt get good reviews either but I do have enough affection for the story lines and backstories and characters that I still retain a positive view. I liked Antman Quantumania and Thor: Love and Thunder. (Liked, not loved.) Didnt like Dr. Strange and the Multiverse. I liked Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings a lot. Awkwafina is amazing!

The Marvels was too scattered, too fast, had weak support for the 'powers' being used. The cat(s) however, were hilarious. The ocean-planet storyline...not so much. Bad.

4/10
 
A local movie theater has been showing a few of the international films nominated for Oscars.

Zone of Interest — I was hesitant to see a film about the commander of Auschwitz and his family who live next door to the camp, but glad I changed my mind. The camp and its activities are not seen, but the smoke stack of the crematorium rises in the background even as prisoners work the gardens and do chores for the commander’s social-climbing wife, played by the excellent Sandra Huller. Very chilling portrait of the acceptance, then normalization of evil as a daily presence. Written and directed by Jonathon Glazer (Sexy Beast). Highly recommended.

Anatomy of a Fall - Just as the title suggests, an examination of a fall from an attic window to determine whether the death was by suicide or murder. Charges are brought against the widow, and as the trial unfolds the audience learns of the strains within a marriage from both the prosecutor and the widow and her attorney. With each new bit of testimony the balance between guilt and innocence teeters, until the verdict is decided. The amazing Sandra Huller plays the wife/widow. Highly recommended.

The Teachers’ Lounge — A series of thefts have taken place in the teacher’ lounge of a German school, and the failure to determine the culprit leads the administrators to dubious means of identifying who is the thief. As suspicion falls on students, thinly disguised intimidation is used to have them inform on each other. Then a “voluntary” search of boys’ wallets to determine who the administrators might think has too much money, which is another failure. A new idealistic teacher decides on her own to try another approach; she leaves her wallet in her coat left on the back of a chair in which she has been working on her laptop. The laptop camera will record the theft should it occur. There is a theft, and recorded evidence, and an allegation is made against an employee. From there the situation spirals downward. The idealistic teacher sees her attempts to protect students, and fairly handle the worsening situation have no affect. Impassioned stands are taken, with seemingly no effective way to have a resolution accepted by all concerned. Recommended. The contrast between authoritarian approaches and sensitivity to the rights of students, as well as individual antagonism, and prejudice make a compelling film. The director, Ilker Catak, the German born son of Turkish immigrants, partially based the story on a Turkish childhood friend who was accused of stealing, and frisked in front of other students at school.
 
Not a movie, but a character analysis of Alejandro Gillick, the true protagonist in the film, "Sicario."
 
Oppenheimer, streaming on Peacock.

Excellent, fascinating, pit-of-your-stomach ominous...and sickening.

I've been out to the site in Hanford, the 'site' is secure but the huge desert acres around it arent anymore, you can drive in and there are historic interpretive signs. Even tho the cooling towers are shrouded in metal sheds now, the entire place is ominous and disheartening. And you are looking down into it, much of it was hidden from sight down in a valley. Then the manufacturing/extraction site is up on the opposite side (that's fenced off) in the distance.

Movie: 9/10
 
The Marvels, now streaming on Disney+

I am a Marvel franchise fan. Was really disappointed here. It didnt get good reviews either but I do have enough affection for the story lines and backstories and characters that I still retain a positive view. I liked Antman Quantumania and Thor: Love and Thunder. (Liked, not loved.) Didnt like Dr. Strange and the Multiverse. I liked Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings a lot. Awkwafina is amazing!

The Marvels was too scattered, too fast, had weak support for the 'powers' being used. The cat(s) however, were hilarious. The ocean-planet storyline...not so much. Bad.

4/10


I didn't think it was that bad,

The ocean plant part was bad,

The rest was more campy entertainment. A light hearted MCU movie especially compared to Captain America ones.

Better than Iron Man 3, the second Thor movie. If going into it with that type of expectation it is ok
 
I didn't think it was that bad,

The ocean plant part was bad,

The rest was more campy entertainment. A light hearted MCU movie especially compared to Captain America ones.

Better than Iron Man 3, the second Thor movie. If going into it with that type of expectation it is ok

LOVED the 2nd Thor movie. The underlying plot was dumb but so are many of them. The "story" itself was good IMO. The more Loki, the better. And it supported his developing storyline...which only just ended with the 2nd season of Loki.

I found the campiness of Thor: Love & Thunder and Antman Quantumania fun and lighthearted tho, along the lines of what you're describing.
 


Dune Part 2 (2024) This was supposed to come out last year and I was miffed, but it was worth the added anticipation. The first part was mostly set up, and it leads to this, an all-out war for the planet Arrakis. Being a huge Dune fan I'm still not happy they left out lots of exposition in Part 1, but it makes more sense now in terms of overall narrative style.

The whole movie in two parts is really more about visuals and mood than dialogue. The changes they made are logical and dont detract from the book, and gives more insight on the religious aspects of Paul's rise to power. Jessica and Chani have much larger roles here than in the source novel, and the Harkonnens are somewhat more competent (in the book they were lethal at first due to their initial deceptions and the emperor's Sardaukar, but turned into idiots as the story wore on), though the exclusions of other, albeit minor characters were a minor annoyance.

All in all, I loved it, but its just shy of perfect. I only hope that a director's cut of Part 1 is issued some time in the future. Rating: 8.5/10
 
Director Wim Wenders’ Perfect Days (in Japanese with subtitles) is in competition for the Oscar for Best International Movie. The main character is a single man of a certain age who works for Tokyo Toilet cleaning public restrooms. He lives a simple existence, with simple pleasures within his routines, happy with his tape deck, vintage cassettes, a camera with film, a books, and his bicycle. His daily life is revealed in a succession of days with each day revealing more of his character, his environment, and how he interacts with those around him. While shifts are subtle, we do see changes as he navigates through his life.

There is little action that actually occurs, so no car chases, no fights, no romance, but my attention didn’t wander. A very thoughtful film, and while quiet, as affecting as Zone of Interest. Anatomy of a Fall, and The Teachers’ Lounge.

The actor won an award at last year’s Cannes film festival.

(The architecture of of the public restrooms is itself an interesting subject; varied styles with very modern glass structures — glass turns opaque when in use — to the more traditional. The Tokyo public restrooms put our local concrete block structures to shame.)


 
I saw three last year.

Ferrari 9/10
Killers of the Flower Moon 10/10
Oppenheimer 10/10

I saw Dune 1 a few weeks ago, but that was a refresh in preparation for Dune 2, which we're seeing Wednesday.
 
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I saw Dune 1 a few weeks ago, but that was a refresh in preparation for Dune 2, which we're seeing Wednesday.

Me too (and same reason). However the director was on Colbert recently and said that #2 wasnt planned (just possible) when #1 was filmed. With that in mind, the ending of Dune 1 sucked and was very unsatisfactory. I only found it appropriate and satisfying because I knew there was a Part 2.

The director also said that they do want to do a #3...but it's not a done deal.
 
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spaceman

adam sandler, as usual, not funny. but this time, that was intentional

weird and disjointed
left me wondering; "what did i just see" at its conclusion
 
of course, when my wife learned i had never watched the matrix movies, i was expected to do so. i was also anticipating greatness ... not so much

If you were the type of person who was inclined to see The Matrix, you would have done so already. Therefore, in order to get you to relent and see the movie, the other person must sell you on how great it is. The problem is twofold: 1) you weren't inclined to see it in the first place, and 2) you were promised greatness, and your expectations were unrealistically high. It was doomed to fail from the start.

For me it was the opposite. I'm already inclined to see that kind of movie, and I knew nothing about it going into the theater (the first I knew of the movie at all was the movie poster in theater lobby). It was only going to meet with success.

This is why I've stopped trying to "sell" movies and shows to people not already inclined to see them.
 
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Well I'm not sure what's going on, but the world has roundly condemned Damsel, which just dropped on Netflix this weekend. I guess that makes me the odd man out because I thought that movie was a ton of fun. I thought the story, acting, cinematography, direction, pacing, sound mixing (Hans Zimmer!) and all the rest of the production made it a solid popcorn movie. If you have a good sound system in your home setup you're really in for a treat.

So, I dunno, definitely a lot of haters for Damsel, but we liked the hell out of it.
 
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The Holdovers. Paul Giamatti. He and the movie were were nominated for Oscars. The female supporting actress, DaVine, won.

Well, it was pretty cliched, and had a major contrivance to arrange the situation (see: helicopter) but it was well done. Not a lot of surprises. It did not push Paul Giamatti out of his comfort zone.

7/10
 
Io Capitano [I Captain], by Matteo Garrone, and Italy’s entry for best international film for the Academy Awards. The story of two young cousins from Senegal, sixteen years old, who decide to leave home and head for Europe / Italy to make their mark on the world.

Once on their way, they join an exodus of impoverished sub-Saharan Africans making their way across the Sahel, then endless desert, and into lawless Libya hoping to cross the Mediterranean to Italy. They, with many others, are mercilessly exploited by well-organized groups who care little for the cruelty they inflict as they rob, beat, torture, and kill for money. The Africans endure, try their best to help their own, protecting who they can, comforting those in need.

The journey the two young cousins travel is typical of the dangers faced and overcome in order to cross the Mediterranean as boat people. I wonder how the film was received in Italy where the current far-right government is unmistakably anti-immigrant, especially against Black and Muslim immigrants. 9.3/10

Garrone won best director for Io Capitano at the Venice film festival in 2023. Covers some of the same themes as Zone of Interest, but in a modern context, in places where functioning government is rare. My nephew was unaware of the plight of African boat people, the dangers they face, and the tens of thousands who have drowned making the crossing from North Africa to Italy (Lampedusa, Sicily) and Malta.



 
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