Movies: Last Movie You Watched and Rate It | Part#: Some High Number +1

[sr edler]

Mr. Arkadin (also known as Confidential Report) (1955) by Orson Welles – 4.5/10

Okay, so I watched this film. Apparently it exists in several (minor different) versions. I don't know which one I watched, but I knew from the start the film have a reputation of being "unfinished". I didn't like it very much though (the film), I don't think because of its unfinishedness, but mostly because of the campy exaggerated tone/acting.

I've read/heard a story regarding the 1967 James Bond spoof/comedy film Casino Royale where it's said that Peter Sellers and Orson Welles couldn't stand each other during filming because Sellers tried to take his acting/the film seriously and Orson Welles just wanted to perform magic tricks on the set while shooting the movie (he was a hobby magician). That film is quite unwatchable, not only because of Welles though but because of everything, and I can't remove myself from the slight feel of something similar here. It's hard to pin down to a tee though.

Sometimes when you watch this film you get a feeling Welles is not taking it very seriously. Perhaps semi-comedy just isn't his strongest genre, I don't know.

(first scene in the film is a shot of this plane, at least in the version I watched)

Mr. Arkadin/Confidential Report was shot mainly in Spain (where I guess Welles lived at the time) and other locations in Europe. The narrative moves too quickly in the beginning, and the film lacks in structure/build up. The main actor/character (Robert Arden/Guy Van Stratten) also lacks heavily in charisma/likability. Pretty much everyone in the film does, actually.

The film does have some relatively good/interesting scenes though. What did annoy me when I watched this film was that it's very easy to see the potential in the story. Welles' character (Mr. Arkadin) was apparently modeled after the the real-life Greek businessman/industrialist Sir Basil Zaharoff who made a great fortune for himself as an arms dealer during WW1 and was described as a "merchant of death" and "mystery man of Europe" during the first few decades of the 20th century. That's a great foundation.

The German title on this film is Herr Satan persönlich and the Swedish title is Herr Satan själv, and both those titles translates to "Mr. Satan himself", but no time during the film do you get the feeling of something eerie in the antagonistic character because Welles lends himself too much to his hobby magician self and not enough to the actual war/post-war settings/stories/undertones.

I think I would have liked this film a lot more if it went much closer to The Third Man than it does the 1967 version of Casino Royale.

I also didn't like most of the close-ups.

A big plus/thumbs up for Gert "Goldfinger" Fröbe in a small role as a German police detective though.

Mr. Arkadin telling the story of the scorpion and the frog for a smaller audience.

 

[Nalens Oga]

Gregory's Girl (1980) - 8/10

What a film, what a film. Very nostalgic looking with awful haircuts and a simple Scottish scenery. It's like if a John Hughes high school flick was likable and innocent rather than creepy, plus it was funny. Also one of the best sibling relationships I've seen on TV. And the ending, the entire scene where he's walked through and that part where they're lying on the grass and the camera tilts would be an iconic moment in cinema if this was a Hollywood production.

Dogma (1999) - 6.5/10

A mixed bag. The cinematography is ugly (I believe because of poor lighting) which gives it a cheap look like those Scary Movie type parody films. The concept is dumb but well paced and funny, it just gets a bit tedious and the drawn out ending is dumb. At one point it becomes boring when Smith is trying to shock you with his spin on what religion could be. It feels like a rough draft with potential but just short of actually being great. I've mentioned before the contrast in acting with some of the people in this film.

 

[Osprey]

Prospect [2018] :

A father takes his teenage daughter to a dangerous planet to dig for precious gems - Father Of The Year he is not. Not only is the environment hostile, so are the other prospectors. Next thing you know, they are in serious trouble.

Prospect doesn't look like it had much of a budget. The special effects are bare bone and the space suits look like they were put together with junk bought at a garage sale. Instead, the movie concentrates on character development and it's all the better for it.

The story is original and unpredictable, the acting is strong, and the claustrophobic audio adds to the suspense - you actually feel as if these people are on a strange, unsafe planet.

I'm not a Sci-Fi guy, but I really liked Prospect. This little film is so much better / more intense / more realistic than the expensive Sci-Fi junk you see in theaters.

8/10

Movie Trailer :

I just watched this. I am a sci-fi guy and I quite liked it. It's definitely bare bones, but, as you said, it concentrates on characters, not effects or sets. It's really a story about the relationship between two characters, and one that could've been set, say, during the California Gold Rush, if the writer had had a mind to make a Western, instead. I'm glad that it was given a sci-fi setting, though, because it was nice to get one that was a little more gritty and realistic than most. For example, I liked that, for once, the characters couldn't just ditch their helmets because the planet's air was exactly like Earth's. Anyways, it's a nice little independent film that I'm glad that I followed your recommendation on. Thanks.

Spoiler

When the girl tried her hand at harvesting a gem, I let out an exasperated sigh... and then was very pleasantly surprised when she botched it, as well. If this had been a major studio picture, you just know that the teenage girl would've succeeded on her first attempt at what the older man had repeatedly failed at. I really appreciated at that point that it was an independent picture.

 

[ORRFForever]

I just watched this. I am a sci-fi guy and I quite liked it. It's definitely bare bones, but, as you said, it concentrates on characters, not effects or sets. It's really a story about the relationship between two characters, and one that could've been set, say, during the California Gold Rush, if the writer had had a mind to make a Western, instead. I'm glad that it was given a sci-fi setting, though, because it was nice to get one that was a little more gritty and realistic than most. For example, I liked that, for once, the characters couldn't just ditch their helmets because the planet's air was exactly like Earth's. Anyways, it's a nice little independent film that I'm glad that I followed your recommendation on. Thanks.

Spoiler

When the girl tried her hand at harvesting a gem, I let out an exasperated sigh... and then was very pleasantly surprised when she botched it, as well. If this had been a major studio picture, you just know that the teenage girl would've succeeded on her first attempt at what the older man had repeatedly failed at. I really appreciated at that point that it was an independent picture.

Agree with your post - especially the "spoiler" comment which was spot on. There were a lot of times when this film took me in a direction I didn't expect. I appreciated that.

As you implied, if this was a big Hollywood production, the young girl would have been turned into a super hero by movie's end. I'm glad she wasn't. She was just an ordinary person trying to survive.

It REALLY bothered me that her father took her to that planet, tho - what an IDIOT! I guess being "bothered" is a tribute to the quality of the movie.

 

[Osprey]

As you implied, if this was a big Hollywood production, the young girl would have been turned into a super hero by movie's end. I'm glad she wasn't. She was just an ordinary person trying to survive.

I liked that she's a realistic teenager, one who isn't cut out to survive on her own and needs protection and assistance from adults. At the same time, though, she can stand up for herself and decide when to trust those adults and when not to. That's how teenagers are, but most sci-fi films and series go with an idealized and unrealistic notion of teenagers and kids who are highly self-sufficient and don't need adults. Even my favorite sci-fi film, Aliens, includes that trope (and even plays it up against cowardly adults). It was nice, for once, to get a sci-fi film that doesn't assume that all young people in the future will be super resourceful, intelligent, skilled and brave and, instead, presents one that's not so different from an average young person today.

It REALLY bothered me that her father took her to that planet, tho - what an IDIOT! I guess being "bothered" is a tribute to the quality of the movie.

Well, considering that the mom is dead and he needs to work to support them, the alternative would've been to leave her behind by herself, which doesn't sound too great, either. A lot of fathers would probably choose personally protecting their kids in a potentially dangerous place over leaving them alone and unprotected. Besides, she's about 16 or 17 and old enough to start learning about the world and helping out, so it really didn't bother me at all. I might've agreed with you if she had been, say, 12 or 13, though.

 

[ORRFForever]

I liked that she's a realistic teenager, one who isn't cut out to survive on her own and needs protection and assistance from adults. At the same time, though, she can stand up for herself and decide when to trust those adults and when not to. That's how teenagers are, but most sci-fi films and series go with an idealized and unrealistic notion of teenagers and kids who are highly self-sufficient and don't need adults. Even my favorite sci-fi film, Aliens, includes that trope (and even plays it up against cowardly adults). It was nice, for once, to get a sci-fi film that doesn't assume that all young people in the future will be super resourceful, intelligent, skilled and brave and, instead, presents one that's not so different from an average young person today.



Well, considering that the mom is dead and he needs to work to support them, the alternative would've been to leave her behind by herself, which doesn't sound too great, either. A lot of fathers would probably choose personally protecting their kids in a potentially dangerous place over leaving them alone and unprotected. Besides, she's about 16 or 17 and old enough to start learning about the world and helping out, so it really didn't bother me at all. I might've agreed with you if she had been, say, 12 or 13, though.

Fair enough. You make good points.

 

[The Macho King]

Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping - 8/10

I love this flick. It has some pacing problems, and it isn't Spinal Tap, but it's awesome. f*** Bin Laden is the best song ever written.

 

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

Reality Bites - 6/10 ... (25th anniversary)
American Made - 4/10
Equalizer 2 - 3/10

Not a great week...

 

[Puck]

Dragged Across Concrete, by S. Craig Zahler 5.0

MetaCritic.com Summary: Two police detectives find themselves suspended when a video of their strong-arm tactics is leaked to the media. With little money and no options, the embittered policemen descend into the criminal underworld and find more than they wanted waiting in the shadows.

I thought it was a terrible movie. A good 40 minutes could have been left on the cutting room floor.

Having said that, although I personally disliked it, I admit it was somewhat well crafted to a degree, the acting was good, no matter what I think of Mel Gibson or Vince Vaughn, they had good chemistry together.

The writer took on complex subjects but you could see through it. When writing about repugnant behaviour, he tried and failed with counter-arguments to justify his protagonists' actions. I also think hiring Gibson and Vaughn for his film says a lot about his thinking process.

I was surprised to see the good reviews for this, but after thinking about it twice, I wrote the second paragraph above giving it some technical credit even if I disagree on other matters. And I do disagree, I did not like it at all.

I don't know Zahler, but I doubt I will follow him in the future. Not my cup of tea. I'd give this a 4.0 but I only increased it by begrudgingly admitting it had some technical merit even if I disliked his craft immensely.

 

[ORRFForever]

Arctic [2019] :

Have you ever wondered what would happen if you were alone in the Arctic? And what if, to make survival even more of a challenge, you had to lug 200 lbs of dead weight everywhere you went? And what if, just when you thought things couldn't get any worse, an enormous polar bear decided to pay a visit?

Well, good news, because you can watch Arctic and find out - a man vs nature movie with endless scenery that is both horrifying and beautiful.

Oh, and to answer my original question : No matter what this movie tries to tell you, without a doubt, you'd freeze to death in no time!

7/10

Movie Trailer :

​

 

[Hockeyfrilla]

Robin Hood (2018) - 4/10

 

[Desdichado93]

9/10. One of the greatest comedies ever made. Way classier then any of the newer "comedies".

 

[KallioWeHardlyKnewYe]

Comedy directing legend Blake Edwards, fresh off the smash hit Breakfast at Tiffany's, decided to follow that with ... a creepy noir thriller? The nonsensically named Experiment in Terror is an interesting curio indeed that shows Edwards might have had a different career path should he have wanted it. This is a nice little well-made thriller about a bank teller who is threatened/coerced into pulling off a robbery. That sounds a little more lively than the movie actually is. It's slow paced (and maybe even a little fatty in some parts — there's at least one subplot that could probably be excised at no loss). But Edwards has a surprisingly deft hand at a thriller. Though lumped into a "Columbia Noir" theme on the new Criterion Channel, it edges a little more toward horror. The villain of the piece is the most memorable element. His plan is ultimately a little dumb (as is he), but he's still a genuinely menacing and creepy stalker who is less of a noir scuzzo and more of a portention of movie murders to come.

 

[Hockeyfrilla]

Unsane (2018) - 6/10

 

[bwright]

Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck's Captain Marvel (2019) - 7/10

Had a lot of fun with it. I thought Brie Larson did well with what she was given. A second watch may change my opinion

 

[ProstheticConscience]

The Thing (1982)

Still creepy and effective after all these years. Better acted, better fx and scarier than the recent and totally redundant remake. A horror classic, and Kurt Russel just makes everything better. Although looking back, it still has a huge logical flaw; the fact that people are somehow more interested in the alien specimen than they are about an actual spaceship.

 

[Osprey]

The Thing (1982)

Still creepy and effective after all these years. Better acted, better fx and scarier than the recent and totally redundant remake. A horror classic, and Kurt Russel just makes everything better. Although looking back, it still has a huge logical flaw; the fact that people are somehow more interested in the alien specimen than they are about an actual spaceship.

Well, it was the 1980s. Spaceships were more common back then. Besides, Kurt Russell is such a cool customer that, even if he had been like "OMG! A spaceship!" on the inside, he would've never let it show.

 

[ORRFForever]

High Life [2019] :

High Life opens with a man and his baby daughter on a space ship. They're alone. The man feeds and cares for her, all while struggling with his inner demons. The man then dumps a bunch of dead bodies overboard. What follows is the back story...

* The man is a killer;
* He and a handful of other convicts were sent to a black hole;
* All hell broke loose along the way.

High Life is two LONG hours of sex and violence. And while it's enjoyable to see the still beautiful/sexy Juliette Binoche in the "F*** Box", those two minutes of voyeuristic fun don't make up for all the other ugliness.

I'm not a Sci-Fi guy so it's not surprising that I didn't like this well received movie.

3.5/10

Movie Trailer :

 

[ProstheticConscience]

The Ruthless

with Italian people.

Story of the rise and fall of Santo Russo, a big wheel in the Calabrian mafia in Milan in the 70's and 80's. The Calabrian mafia is totally different from the Sicilian mafia. Apparently.

Does the standard biographical rise of the mobster thing with an omnipresent Italian voice-over telling us how this kid Santo was screwed because his Calabrian mobster dad did something shmucky, got chased, and had to take his family to Milan. Santo grows up, robs people with his buddies, has sex with lots of pretty ladies, shoots people, eventually gets the Milan mob knee-deep into heroin, then has marital issues. There are some nice car chases with vintage Alfa Romeo cars; Jeremy Clarkson should definitely check this one out.

Meh. Walks down a very familiar path that gangster movies have walked forever. A few novel threads with how Santo mismanages his wife and mistress, but really pretty standard stuff. Some funny bits here and there, but the pacing's totally amateur hour.

On Netflix now.

Well, it was the 1980s. Spaceships were more common back then. Besides, Kurt Russell is such a cool customer that, even if he had been like "OMG! A spaceship!" on the inside, he would've never let it show.

And it makes you think. In the 80's, you were looking out and away. Now, it's: hey, how many likes did this post get?! What horrible thing did Trump do today?! Are those scary brown people bashing up against our border?! Makes you wonder if we're ever going to look out again. Or, given the way we're ruining our planet, if we'll get the chance to.

Anyway, moving on...

 

[Osprey]

BlacKkKlansman (2018) - 3/10 (Really didn't like it)

I found this to be quite overrated, especially considering that it was up for Best Picture, Best Director and four other Oscars, and a remarkably sophomoric effort for such a veteran director as Spike Lee. What should be an interesting true story is rendered somewhat uninteresting and boring. The characters, even the leads, are two dimensional. We don't learn anything, really, about Ron Stallworth, the person whose story it's based on. The villains of the story are caricatures who can't be taken seriously and are never a threat to the good guys. There's no tension or drama in the entire film, which might be OK if it were a comedy, but it's really not that funny. Its one joke is a black man trying to sound like a racist white man over the phone, which is funny the first time, but not so much when the film has to return to it again and again for every comedic moment.

The genius of Get Out is that it manages to be tense while also being funny and provide social commentary that's biting while also being subtle. If you were to watch both films and were not told who directed which, you might guess that Get Out was from the 30-year veteran and BlacKkKlansman was from the first-time director. There's nothing subtle about Spike Lee's agenda in BlacKkKlansman and the whole film suffers for it because it's used to try to make up for all of its shortcomings. Nowhere is that more obvious than in the fact that the story doesn't even have a proper ending. It just sort of fizzles until the film suddenly switches to showing disturbing real-life footage from 2017 in order to beat you over with its message and leave you with a powerful impression that should've come from the story, itself. Subtle like Get Out, it is not. Spike Lee's inability to restrain himself gets in the way of and hurts the film (and not just the storytelling, but the message, as well), IMO.

The film has some good moments and offers a few chuckles, but they're few and far between in a 130-minute run time that rarely gets interesting, feels superficial, doesn't raise any questions or offer any nuance and lacks no subtlety. It's just a sophomoric indictment of society that's timely and popular, but lacking in several principles of good storytelling and filmmaking, IMO.

 

[ORRFForever]

BlacKkKlansman (2018) - 3/10 (Really didn't like it)

I found this to be quite overrated, especially considering that it was up for Best Picture, Best Director and four other Oscars, and a remarkably sophomoric effort for such a veteran director as Spike Lee. What should be an interesting true story is rendered somewhat uninteresting and boring. The characters, even the leads, are two dimensional. We don't learn anything, really, about Ron Stallworth, the person whose story it's based on. The villains of the story are caricatures who can't be taken seriously and are never a threat to the good guys. There's no tension or drama in the entire film, which might be OK if it were a comedy, but it's really not that funny. Its one joke is a black man trying to sound like a racist white man over the phone, which is funny the first time, but not so much when the film has to return to it again and again for every comedic moment.

The genius of Get Out is that it manages to be tense while also being funny and provide social commentary that's biting while also being subtle. If you were to watch both films and were not told who directed which, you might guess that Get Out was from the 30-year veteran and BlacKkKlansman was from the first-time director. There's nothing subtle about Spike Lee's agenda in BlacKkKlansman and the whole film suffers for it because it's used to try to make up for all of its shortcomings. Nowhere is that more obvious than in the fact that the story doesn't even have a proper ending. It just sort of fizzles until the film suddenly switches to showing disturbing real-life footage from 2017 in order to beat you over with its message and leave you with a powerful impression that should've come from the story, itself. Subtle like Get Out, it is not. Spike Lee's inability to restrain himself gets in the way of and hurts the film (and not just the storytelling, but the message, as well), IMO.

The film has some good moments and offers a few chuckles, but they're few and far between in a 130-minute run time that rarely gets interesting, feels superficial, doesn't raise any questions or offer any nuance and lacks no subtlety. It's just a sophomoric indictment of society that's timely and popular, but lacking in several principles of good storytelling and filmmaking, IMO.

Osprey,

U da man!

Finally someone ELSE who recognizes what a piece of GARBAGE BlackKKlansman is. Well done!

For the record, I HATED IT !!!

 

[ORRFForever]

BlacKkKlansman (2018) - 3/10 (Really didn't like it)

I found this to be quite overrated, especially considering that it was up for Best Picture, Best Director and four other Oscars, and a remarkably sophomoric effort for such a veteran director as Spike Lee. What should be an interesting true story is rendered somewhat uninteresting and boring. The characters, even the leads, are two dimensional. We don't learn anything, really, about Ron Stallworth, the person whose story it's based on. The villains of the story are caricatures who can't be taken seriously and are never a threat to the good guys. There's no tension or drama in the entire film, which might be OK if it were a comedy, but it's really not that funny. Its one joke is a black man trying to sound like a racist white man over the phone, which is funny the first time, but not so much when the film has to return to it again and again for every comedic moment.

The genius of Get Out is that it manages to be tense while also being funny and provide social commentary that's biting while also being subtle. If you were to watch both films and were not told who directed which, you might guess that Get Out was from the 30-year veteran and BlacKkKlansman was from the first-time director. There's nothing subtle about Spike Lee's agenda in BlacKkKlansman and the whole film suffers for it because it's used to try to make up for all of its shortcomings. Nowhere is that more obvious than in the fact that the story doesn't even have a proper ending. It just sort of fizzles until the film suddenly switches to showing disturbing real-life footage from 2017 in order to beat you over with its message and leave you with a powerful impression that should've come from the story, itself. Subtle like Get Out, it is not. Spike Lee's inability to restrain himself gets in the way of and hurts the film (and not just the storytelling, but the message, as well), IMO.

The film has some good moments and offers a few chuckles, but they're few and far between in a 130-minute run time that rarely gets interesting, feels superficial, doesn't raise any questions or offer any nuance and lacks no subtlety. It's just a sophomoric indictment of society that's timely and popular, but lacking in several principles of good storytelling and filmmaking, IMO.

I am sooooo happy to find someone here who agrees with me...

BlackKKlansman (2018 ) :

A black cop joins the KKK... sort of.

So much of this movie is over directed (by Spike Lee), over written, over acted, and never fails to not only BOLD its message, but UNDERLINE it with a thick marker.

So, if you like to be preached to, this is the movie for you. Otherwise, save your money because minus the first 30 minutes of BlackKKlansman, which is well done, this is easily the most overrated movie of 2018.

3/10

Movie Trailer :

 

[ORRFForever]

Its one joke is a black man trying to sound like a racist white man over the phone, which is funny the first time, but not so much when the film has to return to it again and again for every comedic moment.

I didn't find it funny the first time. Reminded me of something you'd see on Threes Company back in the 70's. When one of the cops did a "Jack Tripper spit take", I almost walked out.

Your dislike of this movie made my day!

 

[Osprey]

I am sooooo happy to find someone here who agrees with me...

I was surprised to see that it has an 83% audience score at RT. I would've expected something closer to the middle. Perhaps the title and subject matter attract a receptive audience and disinterest another (much like, say, a Bible film would do) and/or a lot of people are giving 3/5 or 6/10 scores because they're afraid that being more negative paints them as racist. Even I debated whether I wanted to write a critical review and open myself up to assumptions. This isn't to take anything away from those who legitimately liked it, mind you, only to address the scarcity of other opinions.

I didn't find it funny the first time. Reminded me of something you'd see on Threes Company back in the 70's. When one of the cops did a "Jack Tripper spit take", I almost walked out.

I liked Three's Company . Also, that spit take wasn't the first time that the joke was made, but more like the 3rd or 4th time, and I agree that it had gotten tiresome by that point.

Your dislike of this movie made my day!

I can tell. I stayed up late to write it and am not feeling too great today, so I hope that you're happy that making your day ruined mine .

 

[Trap Jesus]

Just saw Mid90s. I knew it had just decent reviews, but man, I can't remember being this disappointed in a movie in a while. Not sure if I'd go as far as saying it was bad, but it was pretty damn close. I'm all for slice of life movies without much going on plot-wise, but only if they're done well. This movie literally did nothing for me. Just absolutely nothing going on, and then when stuff did happen it just felt bizarre and out of left field, and really had no consequences whatsoever. It also felt pretentious and unabashedly nostalgia-driven, especially at the start.

Sunny Suljic was pretty good as the lead but nothing to write home about, that's about it. Super disappointed for a movie written by Jonah Hill.