What was the last movie you saw?

Lavarantula. Yes, Lavarantula. Where else but Los Angeles, what else but volcanos, and hey, giant spiders who like fire and lava for breakfast.
CGI allrighty, funny bits, not too gory, and another giant spider movie to discuss, what's not to like?
 
Les Diaboliques (1955) An excellent French mystery about a wife and mistress of an abusive headmaster conspiring to kill him.
 
Sharktopus Vs. Whalewolf, that's playing tonight... but last night's DinoCroc Vs. SuperGator ( I think) was on, and it was what one might expect.... but.. WhaleWolf?? This I gotta see.
 
"Take The Money and Run" (1968)

Decades ago, I used to be a huge fan of writer/director/actor, Woody Allen. Some of his early efforts during the late 60s, early 70s were very dependent on visual slapstick comedy, with a few carefully choreographed one-liners thrown in there from time to time. But then by the mid 70s he moved up a level in both directing and writing, and with it his films became slightly more dramatic, with a touch of pathos and sardonic humour added just to keep his fans happy. And come the turn of the century (some would say from the 90s onwards), his films became dark and almost soulless emotional rollercoasters that you either loved or hated!

Take The Money and Run, is one of those slapstick films where you don't have to think too much about the plot or anything remotely intellectually challenging - it's played for laughs, and although a little uneven in places, it still remains hugely funny and irreverent.

3/5
 
"The Verdict" (1982). Paul Newman, Charlotte Rampling (directed: Sidney Lumet)

Intriguing courtroom drama, with Newman playing a drunk, self-loathing, corrupt, ambulance-chasing lawyer, who is given a case of possible medical negligence against a hospital. The hospital's defence lawyer (the wonderfully scheming James Mason) offers the client a large settlement, which would help Newman pay off some of his own debts and move on to the next case, but without really boosting his own credibility as a good lawyer. Or will he ignore the easy payoff and take the hospital to task, putting moral duty and best interests for his client first and foremost!

Newman, has never been better! A superb performance, which was incredibly ignored by the Academy! Able support from James Mason and femme fatele, Charlotte Rampling (and the controversial "slap" scene!); all fine-tuned and brilliantly executed by Sidney "12 Angry Men" Lumet.

Incredible performance all round

5/5
 
I re-watched the Total Recall remake. the other day. It's not terrible. Some of the action is decent. Having now seen it twice, though, I still couldn't tell you what the plot is, which I think speaks volumes about its failings. Kate Beckinsale was really effective in it, though, I thought. I genuinely believed she wanted to kill Quaid. Her anger and frustration was palpable.
 
Whalewolf is, like, an Orca but it runs around, and it whines like a dog when not roaring whaleishly..* I watched half of it, so far, may wait a few years before putting it on again. Down By Law had Tom Waits in it, and his songs, it's rated high but kind of ends without much happening. Nice black and white look though.
 
AE35Unit said:
Watched Ghostbusters , the new one. Not brilliant but not as bad as people made out!
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I really enjoyed the new Ghost Busters, Kate McKinnon was hysterical. I actually would say I found the new one funnier then the originals, but the originals are still better movies overall.
 
I have been to the cinema quite a lot this winter. Last night Was Kong: Skull Island. My wife and I really enjoyed it. Plot of course wasn't brilliant but it was good enough. I think for a film with lots of CGI action it was really impressive. A lot of mixed CGI and live action films have really unsatisfying fight sequences. But this actually felt realistic. Kong whacking helicopters, various big and impressive monsters causing mayhem etc. 3d helped a bit. I think the story is more fun than the standard King Kong tale that has the imprisonment and "love" with the leading actress.
I enjoyed it more than La La Land, Moonlight and John Wick 2 that we saw recently, though our expectations were different.

We also watched Don't Breathe at home. That is a really entertaining horror-thriller.
 
Condorman (1981)
I saw this film when I was a kid and absolutely loved it. I got the DVD recently and wasn't sure whether it would live up to the nostalgia, but the film is still a funny, entertaining adventure. It stars, perhaps rather oddly, Michael Crawford (of Some Mothers do 'Ave 'Em) but he was, to my mind, perfect for the part, and also features Oliver Reed. What I didn't remember is that the film was made by Disney.
 
Watched Kong: Skull Island last night and enjoyed it - not a classic, but good fun.

Also saw for the first time this week It Follows - despite a few quibbles I was really impressed (and at times a little spooked!). An original concept for horror and a gripping watch.
 
Rogue One

I waited a fair bit to see this one, and my anticipation was high. Having now seen it, I feel disappointed; flat.

The first hour, to me, was disjointed. It failed to build the characters, the situation, and especially failed to create a feeling that it was part of the Star Wars universe until the final moments.

The ending was what it had to be, considering it was predestined to merge flawlessly with A New Hope.

It felt hurried, desperate to fill a gap, and in the shadow of even the worst of the prequels without the Jedi to offer direction and a moral compass.

It wasn't even a reasonable stand alone war flick. Out of ten, I resolved a four at best.
 
Whilst I've always loved the theme tune, I realised a while back that I'd never actually seen the movie so I went and bought it. I'm talking about Shaft (1971) and, to tell the truth, I was pretty disappointed.

Maybe it's the passage of time that's to blame or maybe it's just the way they talk (can you dig it?;)) but I felt that, rather than watching a 70s detective movie, I was actually viewing a caricature of that genre. It even had a brief scene with Antonio Fargas as a kind of proto-Huggy Bear.

I don't think I'll be watching it again.

Also watched Marathon Man (1976) which I enjoyed but still cringe at the dentist scene.:eek:
 
Split (2016). A stunning performance from James MacEvoy elevates this gripping movie.
 
Kong; Skull Island. Well the spoilage is... nothing particular. The formula is, get our group trapped on the island with Kong and the monsters. Thus, Kong destroys all the helicopters, who are too dim to fly higher, and can only shout 'What is that?' when it is obviously the biggest monkey in the world. After that, the action and the monsters are terrific, but the acting feels like nobody in the cast actually saw a monster at all, just acted to invisible CGI. That said, it is a lot of quality monster action, probably really good on a giant screen.
 
The Legend of Tarzan
Not much to recommend about this film, other than a way to kill nearly two hours of a slow Sunday afternoon. Good to know that Tarzan's jungle friends can still be relied upon to deliver a stampede when one is needed.
 
Steve S said:
Watched Kong: Skull Island last night and enjoyed it - not a classic, but good fun.

Also saw for the first time this week It Follows - despite a few quibbles I was really impressed (and at times a little spooked!). An original concept for horror and a gripping watch.
Click to expand...
Yes, It Follows is a great film for horror fans.
 
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