What was the last movie you saw?

[Starbeast]

Thief (1981) - Stars James Caan, Tuesday Weld & Willie Nelson. Directed by Michael Mann. Great drama about an ex-con named, Frank, who runs a car dealership, and decides to a few more jewel heists before he quits to live comfortably (Mr Caan said that is his favorite film where he played the main character). However, he is offered a deal by working for a crime boss who promises Frank he only needs to do a few jobs for him. But the deal goes sour and forces Frank to settle the problem. Tremendous music score by Tangerine Dream.

No Time To Die (2021) - Stars Daniel Craig, Ana de Armas & Rami Malek. I enjoyed this film, but sorry to know that this is Mr Craig's last Bond movie. I like the Aston Martin's that were used, the classic and a newer version. Beautiful cars! BTW, the scene where Bond spins the car around and uses twin miniguns on villains, reminded me of a story I wrote about a Bond-like character named, Sasha Silverfox. Her Caine companion, agent Sniffy, rescues her at the end of the tale using a spy car equipped with twin machine guns and yes, spinning the car to hit hundreds of henchmen. Needless to say my mouth dropped opened, then smiled at the scene where Bond takes out the bad guys doing the same thing. Very cool man!

Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983) - Wonderful ending to this ORIGINAL trilogy. I understand there are a number of people who don't like the Ewok tribe. Fortunately, I always liked them. I remember when I saw this in the theater decades ago, the crowd cheered loudly when Darth Vader saved his son from the Emperor. I yelled "YAH!" myself with everyone.

 

[Mon0Zer0]

Heretic - Hugh Grant monologues up a storm in this glorified student horror film / screed about religion. For what it is, I enjoyed it even if wasn't as deep or revelatory as it thought it was. Either way, it's a joy to see Grant acting out of type as an avuncular villain sending up the arguments of internet edgelords circa 2000. The plot is a load of nonsense, though.

 

[Jeffbert]

Watched at home as part of our continuing exploration of documentaries:

Grass (1925)

Silent record of the migration of a herding people from modern Turkey to modern Iran in search of pastureland. Pretty remarkable tale of survival; crossing a river on rafts made from inflated goat skins, etc.

I saw this a few years ago. Truly sad, as people crossing a river were swept away by the current. That, and many other hardships. The people were migratory, pulling up stakes every few years, to seek a better place.

The director Merian C. Cooper also directed KING KONG.

 

[paranoid marvin]

Thief (1981) - Stars James Caan, Tuesday Weld & Willie Nelson. Directed by Michael Mann. Great drama about an ex-con named, Frank, who runs a car dealership, and decides to a few more jewel heists before he quits to live comfortably (Mr Caan said that is his favorite film where he played the main character). However, he is offered a deal by working for a crime boss who promises Frank he only needs to do a few jobs for him. But the deal goes sour and forces Frank to settle the problem. Tremendous music score by Tangerine Dream.

No Time To Die (2021) - Stars Daniel Craig, Ana de Armas & Rami Malek. I enjoyed this film, but sorry to know that this is Mr Craig's last Bond movie. I like the Aston Martin's that were used, the classic and a newer version. Beautiful cars! BTW, the scene where Bond spins the car around and uses twin miniguns on villains, reminded me of a story I wrote about a Bond-like character named, Sasha Silverfox. Her Caine companion, agent Sniffy, rescues her at the end of the tale using a spy car equipped with twin machine guns and yes, spinning the car to hit hundreds of henchmen. Needless to say my mouth dropped opened, then smiled at the scene where Bond takes out the bad guys doing the same thing. Very cool man!

Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983) - Wonderful ending to this ORIGINAL trilogy. I understand there are a number of people who don't like the Ewok tribe. Fortunately, I always liked them. I remember when I saw this in the theater decades ago, the crowd cheered loudly when Darth Vader saved his son from the Emperor. I yelled "YAH!" myself with everyone.

I love everything about RotJ, from the Rancor, to the fight on the Barge and the Skiff (Han blindly knocking Fett into the pit) to the speederbike chases, to the cute/deadly ewoks to a proper look at the AT-ST.

Luke looks super cool in his black uniform, and Leia gets her own back for being forced to wear the skimpy costume.

I loved seeing Death Star II in construction and Darth's "The Emperor is not as forgiving ss me" line in one of the best in the whole trilogy.

It's a rollercoaster of fun from the first to the last minute, although I do think the cinematic original is the best version.

 

[JunkMonkey]

The Last Sentinel (2006) - a godawful SF film in which the world is saved from an army of rogue cop killer droids by Don 'The Dragon' Wilson playing an enhanced super-soldier (with a talking rifle), aided by Katee Sackhoff playing Katee Sackhoff. Most of the budget went on pyrotechnics, hiring Universal Studios' main street backlot for the day (with some crumpled up newspapers scattered around to signify the post apocalyptic nature of things), pyrotechnics, paying Katee Sackoff to take her top of (but not enough to turn round when she did), and more pyrotechnics.

Utter crap.

The dialogue is AWFUL (what of it you can hear) and every other shot consists of an explosion or some automatic weapon being fired. Apart, that is, from at the climax where, for some totally unfathomable reason, the next generation of Super Killer Droids come equipped with katanas.

For Katee Sackhoff completist only - and to save them the pain of having to watch it, even on fast forward, here's her with her norks out:

Nice bum.

 

[Toby Frost]

Spirited Away (2001). Wonderful, though being picky, a couple of things should have been explained or built up to better.

I agree. It was quite hard to work out what a Japanese audience would have got, or whether it needed a bit more explanation. Utterly weird and fascinating, though.

 

[JunkMonkey]

Tokyo Raiders (2000) - I introduce #1 son to Hong Kong action movies.

 

[alexvss]

Nosferatu (2024).

Robert Egger’s (The VVitch, The Lighthouse, The Northman) take on the classic vampire story. And what a way to kick off this year. Amazing, amazing movie.It never ceased to amaze me, even when I knew precisely what was going to happen (it’s a Dracula rip-off after all). The atmosphere, tone, the dialogue…everything about it is great.

It’s very sexual. I know, there’s something inherently sexual about vampires sucking blood; but even so, it drew my attention on how sexual it is.

Highly recommended.

 

[bretbernhoft]

That last movie I watched is "Dune: Part Two". Excellent cinema.

 

[Foxbat]

Countess Dracula (1971).
Watchable hokum from Hammer. It might be classed as a ‘blood and bosoms’ movie (heaving bosom provided by Ingrid Pitt, blood provided by a host of pretty girls) but it’s bit naughty of Hammer to reference Dracula in the title when the movie has nothing whatsoever to do with the Count or any his relatives. Obviously done to get bums on seats.

 

[Starbeast]

Highlander (1986) - Stars Christopher Lambert, Sean Connery & Clancy Brown. I watched the "director's cut", it's not bad to see more movie footage, but I still enjoy the original "theatrical release" better. It's tighter and fast-paced with better audio sound. However, this is still an outstanding film to view. I like the flashback scenes, great choice of actors along with a fantastic soundtrack which includes Queen music. The best movie about immortals I've ever seen.

The Punisher (2004) - Stars Thomas Jane, John Travolta & Samantha Mathis. An FBI agent becomes a vigilante when his entire family is murdered by a crime boss. For me, this is an awesome film that brought another Marvel Comics character to life. The Punisher's first appearance was in The Amazing Spider-Man issue #129 (1974). One of my favorite actors, Roy Scheider has a small roll in this movie.

Nobody (2021) - Stars Steve Odenkirk, Aleksey Serebryakov & Connie Nielsen. Basically it's about a retired US government assassin, Hutch Mansell, who wants to live a normal life. An altercation happens on a bus which leads Hutch into huge trouble with a mafia boss. Actor Steve Odenkirk was inspired to make this film after he suffered a home invasion. Steve was frustrated on how law enforcement handled the situation and thought about how he personally would have handled the matter if he was a "bad a**". One of my favorite actors, Christopher Lloyd is also in this fast-paced action flick.

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

Schoolgirls in Chains (1973)

Not quite as sleazy as the title would suggest. Two brothers kidnap young women. One has the mind of a child and wants them as "pets" and playmates, the other has some serious Mommy issues. (A flashback shows his mother telling his intended fiancée that she and her son are lovers, in no uncertain terms.) Ends with a Shocking Twist Ending stolen from a famous film. Cheap, nasty trash, yes, but sometimes creates a little tension and even some emotionally moving moments.

 

[Randy M.]

Ringing the old year out appropriately on Dec. 31 with a trip to the theater:

Nosferatu (2024) dir. Robert Eggers; starring Lily-Rose Depp, Nicholas Hoult, Bill Skarsgard

It’s been decades since I watched the silent version, but my impression is this followed it closely; a friend who’d seen it more recently confirmed that impression. Beautifully shot, the feel of the town, the castle, the ship, the countryside all seem genuine and textured; the costumes appear appropriate to the time and place. The acting is good throughout, especially Depp as Ellen, Hoult as Helen’s husband, Thomas, and Emma Corrin as Anna, Ellen’s friend. The rats are pretty good, too.

If you’re uncomfortable with gore and violence this may not be for you. Also rats. Many, many rats.


Avoiding facing 2025 too directly:

Deadpool and Wolverine (2024) dir. Shawn Levy; starring Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman (Disney+)

An old-fashioned feel-good movie about a broken man yanked out of his timeline and given a shot at redemption. Served with extra helpings of violence and copious fake blood and bits – lotsa bits.

If you saw the first two Deadpools, more of the same but with a nice turn by Emma Corrin as Cassandra Nova (didn’t realize until now I had watched a Corrin two-fer). Really, I can’t complain about any series that offers Leslie Uggams a chance to cuss constantly and a steady paycheck.


Murder Mystery (2019) dir. Kyle Newacheck; starring Adam Sandler, Jennifer Aniston, Luke Evans, Gemma Arterton (Prime)

Often inane, but also often funny. Can’t recall if Sandler and Anniston had worked together previously, but they seem like a natural fit here, Anniston’s border-line ditzy sensibleness against his boisterousness mesh well. Plot is, pushed into a corner, cop Sandler takes wife Anniston on a European vacation. On flight, Anniston meets rich man Evans and the couple ends up invited to join Evans on his uncle’s (Terrance Stamp, playing to type as an overbearing gazillionaire) yacht. There’s a will, a murder or two, many hijinks and the cop and his wife have to figure out whodunit. Everyone seems to be having fun and the location shooting is gorgeous.


The Fall Guy (2024) dir. David Leitch; starring Ryan Gosling, Emily Blunt, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Hannah Waddingham (Prime)

Based on the ‘80s U.S. TV show with Lee Majors, this has stunt man Colt Seavers (Gosling) recovering more mentally than physically from a stunt gone badly wrong. Conned into joining the production of his former lover Jody’s (Blunt) first movie as director, he is dragged into finding the missing star Tom Ryder (Taylor-Johnson; another unintended two-fer, since he’s also in Nosferatu).

Blunt and Gosling work off each other really well, Waddingham steals almost every scene she’s in, Taylor-Johnson seems to be having a blast, the stunt work is terrific, every bit as good as in Deadpool, but for all this the movie doesn’t quite come together. Can’t really pinpoint why. But if you want mindless entertainment, it works well enough.


And finally, circling around seriousness:

Peeping Tom (1960) dir. Michael Powell; starring Karlheinz Bohm, Anna Massey, Moira Shearer

A re-watch (Turner Cable Movies), this was probably 20 years ahead of its time; excoriated in the British press, it ended Powell’s career as a director despite earlier successes, and in spite of the success the same year of Psycho. Plot: A young photographer, Mark (Bohm), essentially tortured by his scientist father as a child, is fearful of sex and obsessed with capturing the fear of death on film. Naturally, there’s only one way of doing this.

PT seems to come down on the “nurture” side of “nature vs. nurture.”

I’ve never seen it mentioned as an inspiration for giallos but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was. Has some of the same feel for me as Hitchcock’s later movie, Frenzy. Tangential trivia: Jack Watson and Nigel Davenport portray police investigating the murders, and I’ve recently seen both in episodes of The Avengers the first year Diana Rigg’s Mrs. Peel was featured. (Silent Dust and The Danger Makers, respectively.)

I don’t know when British movies began to allow nudity, but this seems to get around any censors by having Mark work in a shop where postcards of topless women are displayed, and Mark supplements his income as an assistant in movie production by creating some of those cards and other photos. According to IMDB’s bio, Pamela Green (Millie in the movie) worked for George Harrison Marks in that business and Powell took inspiration from her work as model and as designer of sets and costumes for the shoots.

(I think I watched more movies in the two weeks around Christmas and New Year's than I did in the three months before that.)

 

[Jeffbert]

Ringing the old year out appropriately on Dec. 31 with a trip to the theater:

Nosferatu (2024) dir. Robert Eggers; starring Lily-Rose Depp, Nicholas Hoult, Bill Skarsgard

It’s been decades since I watched the silent version, but my impression is this followed it closely; a friend who’d seen it more recently confirmed that impression. Beautifully shot, the feel of the town, the castle, the ship, the countryside all seem genuine and textured; the costumes appear appropriate to the time and place. The acting is good throughout, especially Depp as Ellen, Hoult as Helen’s husband, Thomas, and Emma Corrin as Anna, Ellen’s friend. The rats are pretty good, too.

If you’re uncomfortable with gore and violence this may not be for you. Also rats. Many, many rats.


Avoiding facing 2025 too directly:

Deadpool and Wolverine (2024) dir. Shawn Levy; starring Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman (Disney+)

An old-fashioned feel-good movie about a broken man yanked out of his timeline and given a shot at redemption. Served with extra helpings of violence and copious fake blood and bits – lotsa bits.

If you saw the first two Deadpools, more of the same but with a nice turn by Emma Corrin as Cassandra Nova (didn’t realize until now I had watched a Corrin two-fer). Really, I can’t complain about any series that offers Leslie Uggams a chance to cuss constantly and a steady paycheck.


Murder Mystery (2019) dir. Kyle Newacheck; starring Adam Sandler, Jennifer Aniston, Luke Evans, Gemma Arterton (Prime)

Often inane, but also often funny. Can’t recall if Sandler and Anniston had worked together previously, but they seem like a natural fit here, Anniston’s border-line ditzy sensibleness against his boisterousness mesh well. Plot is, pushed into a corner, cop Sandler takes wife Anniston on a European vacation. On flight, Anniston meets rich man Evans and the couple ends up invited to join Evans on his uncle’s (Terrance Stamp, playing to type as an overbearing gazillionaire) yacht. There’s a will, a murder or two, many hijinks and the cop and his wife have to figure out whodunit. Everyone seems to be having fun and the location shooting is gorgeous.


The Fall Guy (2024) dir. David Leitch; starring Ryan Gosling, Emily Blunt, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Hannah Waddingham (Prime)

Based on the ‘80s U.S. TV show with Lee Majors, this has stunt man Colt Seavers (Gosling) recovering more mentally than physically from a stunt gone badly wrong. Conned into joining the production of his former lover Jody’s (Blunt) first movie as director, he is dragged into finding the missing star Tom Ryder (Taylor-Johnson; another unintended two-fer, since he’s also in Nosferatu).

Blunt and Gosling work off each other really well, Waddingham steals almost every scene she’s in, Taylor-Johnson seems to be having a blast, the stunt work is terrific, every bit as good as in Deadpool, but for all this the movie doesn’t quite come together. Can’t really pinpoint why. But if you want mindless entertainment, it works well enough.


And finally, circling around seriousness:

Peeping Tom (1960) dir. Michael Powell; starring Karlheinz Bohm, Anna Massey, Moira Shearer

A re-watch (Turner Cable Movies), this was probably 20 years ahead of its time; excoriated in the British press, it ended Powell’s career as a director despite earlier successes, and in spite of the success the same year of Psycho. Plot: A young photographer, Mark (Bohm), essentially tortured by his scientist father as a child, is fearful of sex and obsessed with capturing the fear of death on film. Naturally, there’s only one way of doing this.

PT seems to come down on the “nurture” side of “nature vs. nurture.”

I’ve never seen it mentioned as an inspiration for giallos but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was. Has some of the same feel for me as Hitchcock’s later movie, Frenzy. Tangential trivia: Jack Watson and Nigel Davenport portray police investigating the murders, and I’ve recently seen both in episodes of The Avengers the first year Diana Rigg’s Mrs. Peel was featured. (Silent Dust and The Danger Makers, respectively.)

I don’t know when British movies began to allow nudity, but this seems to get around any censors by having Mark work in a shop where postcards of topless women are displayed, and Mark supplements his income as an assistant in movie production by creating some of those cards and other photos. According to IMDB’s bio, Pamela Green (Millie in the movie) worked for George Harrison Marks in that business and Powell took inspiration from her work as model and as designer of sets and costumes for the shoots.

(I think I watched more movies in the two weeks around Christmas and New Year's than I did in the three months before that.)

I recall seeing that film, & was surprised that the nudie postcards were where children would see them, just by walking past the shop. The sicko part about capturing the fear of death on film, I only vaguely recall.

 

[Jeffbert]

Monty Python The Meaning of Live (2014)

I just cannot get that tune out of my head. I wonder if SH could actually produce the words fast enough to 'sing'?

One case of science surpassing science fiction. Compare Hawking to Capt. Pike. 200+ years in the future, & the best way poor Pike can communicate is by one beep for 'yes,' 2 for 'no.' Hawking had it so much better.

How can physicists even know all that stuff?

Some of those skits were just too gross for my liking.

I did like the backstage parts, especially the candid interviews.

 

[Jeffbert]

The Desert Song (1943) During WWII, a French business is building a railroad through the Moroccan desert (much too close to sand dunes!) for whatever reason. But the real reason & power behind it is The Third Reich. So, there are French soldiers enslaving the local Riffs, etc., never imagining that they are working for the Germans.

There are exotic dancers singing, etc., hence the film's title.

So, there are Riff 'terrorists' led by the masked El Khobar, who turns out to be the Cafe's piano player Paul Hudson (Dennis Morgan; not familiar to me), who knows that the Germans are behind the RR and its choo-choo.

Supporting cast/characters:
The local big wig Caid Yousseff (Victor Francen; where else have I seen him?) is secretly in league with the Germans, & only El Khobar knows his secret.

Exotic dancer Margot (Irene Manning; not familiar with her, either); Col. Fontaine (Bruce Cabot; found just a few titles in his filmography that I recognized) is the French commander who had been duped into working for the enemy.

Without either a distinctive face or voice, Cabot is just another actor to me.


Anyway, this made 2.5M+ back in the day.

8/10