What was the last movie you saw?

[Randy M.]

Could also be called BEERFINGER given the villain's occupation.

I'm now trying to imagine the Shirley Bassey theme song ...

 

[KGeo777]

I'm now trying to imagine the Shirley Bassey theme song ...

lol yeah I did too.
It's a funny surprise when you see the villain for real because of the beer ads that feature in the story as background imagery.

 

[kythe]

Well I sat done and watched Breaking Dawn part 2 last night - and although I have to admit it was miles better than part 1...I have to ask the question. Is how the film ended, the same way the books end?

Because I thought it was a massive cop out and really very unsatisfying. Especially the climatic 'battle'.

I know I'm quoting this post from years ago...

I had seen the first couple of Twilight movies years ago and read the first book, when the series was popular and creating quite a stir. I found it a mixed bag. Bella and Edward were the most boring characters in the entire story, but all of the support characters had interesting backstories and personalities. I like the world of Twilight, but would have found it better if told from a different character's perspective.

Recently the Twilight series was added to Netflix, so I watched all 4 movies for the first time. I also found the ending a real let-down. This story remains primarily a romance between two people who do nothing with their lives except stare at each other and frolic in the flowers.

In the 4th movie, they gather all these interesting vampires with various relationships, rivalries, and roles in history. It had potential for greater conflict between them as they form a group larger than any vampires have for centuries. What do they do - compete for a somewhat limited "food" supply? Re-ignite old quarrels? Risk detection from humans with their unusual activities? No. They sit around a campfire (maybe they temporarily forgot that fire is the only thing that permanently kills a vampire) swapping old war stories. Really.

The final "battle" would have actually been a satisfying ending for some of the side characters with long histories between them, even with losses on both sides. But we don't get that. This story doesn't take risks. We get more romance between Edward and Bella who live happily ever after, for all eternity.

Maybe I should just write my own vampire story.

 

[Guttersnipe]

O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000). It was funnier than what I remembered.

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

Eyes of Fire (1983)

Unique historical fantasy horror film. In colonial America in 1750, a French soldier questions some English and Irish children who are hundreds of miles away from their territory. In flashback, we get their weird story. There's a preacher living with several women as well as their children and some other followers of his cult. There's also the rather feral daughter of a woman burned for witchcraft who has supernatural powers of her own. The locals try to string him up for adultery and polygamy, but with a little magical help from the daughter he and his followers get away with supplies and a raft. They drift down to Shawnee territory, and find a valley where the Indians refuse to go. (This is marked by a tree covered with white feathers, one of the film's many striking images.) They find some abandoned cabins, left by vanished French settlers, and move in. Then a whole lot of bizarre, spooky things happen. Bones fall out of the sky. Naked people covered with gray mud appear and vanish. Trees have faces growing out of them. The movie is beautifully filmed on a modest budget. The historical stuff is absolutely convincing and realistic, in sharp contrast to the surreal supernatural stuff. I could quibble that some of the special effects are out of place -- solarizing the film during odd happenings doesn't work very well -- but, for the most part, I found it compelling. Recommended.

 

[KGeo777]

I watched LIGHTNING BOLT myself. I wanted to revisit Beerfinger.
I forgot that was an Antonio Margheriti film. He was very good at combining miniatures into scenes where they would expand the budget lok of the film.
The car scene used a fair bit of miniatures.
Those stock footage rocket crashes are disturbing to watch.
I sure wouldnt want to be under one of those malfunctions.

"I didn't like your beer either."

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

Cannibal Girls (1973)

From the director of Ghostbusters comes this low budget Canadian shocker. (No attempt at all is made to disguise the fact that the setting is Canada, unlike many north-of-the-border exploitation films. And there's also a bunch of snow.) Eugene Levy and Andrea Martin star as a couple newly arrived in a small town. (Their presence creates the unavoidable feeling that this is an extended SCTV sketch.) They hear the legend about the Cannibal Girls from the manager of the local motel. It's what you expect; three foxy chicks seduce, murder, and devour three guys. The house where this took place is now a restaurant (!) run by a "reverend" in a top hat who comes across as a TV Horror Host. (Shades of Monster Chiller Horror Theater.) There are no surprises at all in the plot, so it's obvious that the whole town is in on the thing, and the "reverend" is in charge of the Cannibal Girls. There's also an Igor-like character around to haul off bodies, chop them up, etc. About one hour into the film, we find out that a lot of what has already happened was just a dream, but that doesn't change the story at all. The camera generally cuts away from the killings, but there's plenty of blood and red meat. The three Cannibal Girls supply the requisite nudity. Not a good movie, but there's a certain charm to seeing Levy and Martin working together with mostly improvised dialogue.

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

Synanon (1965)

Fictional drama set at the drug rehabilitation organization named in the title. Actually filmed there, too. The cast would make you think that drug addicts, current or reformed, are either tough guys (Alex North, Chuck Conners, Richard Conte) or glamorous women (Stella Stevens, Eartha Kitt.) The plot mostly deals with newcomer North, the guy he used to be in prison with and who he has a grudge with (Conners) and his romance with Stevens. I'll give the movie credit for avoiding a happy ending and for dealing pretty frankly, for 1965, with its sexual themes. (North and Stevens sneak off to have sex, and both women were prostitutes.) Edmond O'Brien plays the role of the real-life leader of Synanon, who uses "tough love" on the addicts, like shaving their heads if they break the rules. What makes this whole thing creepy, of course, is the fact that Synanon would soon degenerate into a violent lunatic cult. Adding to the uncomfortable feeling you get watching this film is the fact that a small part is played by Jay Sebring, one of the victims of the Manson murders.

 

[Fiberglass Cyborg]

The New Mutants (2020)

Like the last two X-Men films, this was critically panned. Like the last two X-Men films, I enjoyed it a lot once I finally saw it. I should just stop reading reviews. It's very different from the source material (Rahne Sinclair is the only character with the same backstory, for instance) but I felt the Y.A.-horror take on superheroes was both interesting and moving.

 

[JunkMonkey]

Black Dynamite - a loving and very funny recreation/homage/parody of the 70s Blaxploitation movies which is a lot funnier than I remembered - possibly because I've seen more Blaxploitation films since I first saw it and I get more of the jokes? Could be!

 

[Mon0Zer0]

Matrix Reloaded - First time re-watching since it was first released. Apart from my general distaste for wire fu, I have to say the action sequences and scene transitions are so well directed. I'm less impressed by the anime homages and the bullet time sequences, but the editing is breathtakingly kinetic. It's nowhere near as good as the first Matrix, but not the let down I thought at the time. They do a fantastic job of bringing a comic book sensibility to the big screen, and I wonder why they've never been offered a Marvel movie.

I still think their technical high point was speed racer, though.

 

[VegetalCrossing]

Based on a Stephen King story though he's uncredited. Having read the story I can report that the film bears no resemblance to it other than the title. Maybe Mr King declined to be credited.

I think he sued the studios for this. An his name was withdraw.

 

[KGeo777]

HIGH PLAINS DRIFTER 1973 - Although it looks great in HD, every time I watch this it is like seeing it for the first time because I forget most of it. I remembered "Beerfinger" after one watch-how come this movie slips the memory after 2-3 watches?
I think it is because other that Eastwood, none of the characters really click. There's something anonymous about them and not even the bad guys leave much of an impression.
Same situation with Pale Rider.
It wasn't the same with Firefox, another Eastwood-directed movie, but that was because Freddie Jones was chewing the scenery in the British secret service offices and the Soviet brass were doing the same in theirs.

Was Eastwood a ghost or the brother of the slain lawman?
I don't think the ghost explanation works too well.

 

[hitmouse]

HIGH PLAINS DRIFTER 1973 - Although it looks great in HD, every time I watch this it is like seeing it for the first time because I forget most of it. I remembered "Beerfinger" after one watch-how come this movie slips the memory after 2-3 watches?
I think it is because other that Eastwood, none of the characters really click. There's something anonymous about them and not even the bad guys leave much of an impression.
Same situation with Pale Rider.
It wasn't the same with Firefox, another Eastwood-directed movie, but that was because Freddie Jones was chewing the scenery in the British secret service offices and the Soviet brass were doing the same in theirs.

Was Eastwood a ghost or the brother of the slain lawman?
I don't think the ghost explanation works too well.

Wasn't Pale Rider pretty much the same film, with a different colour scheme?

 

[KGeo777]

Wasn't Pale Rider pretty much the same film, with a different colour scheme?

Yeah, it was similar from my vague memories of it.

"In an audio interview, Clint Eastwood said that his character Preacher "is an out-and-out ghost."[6] However, whereas Eastwood's 1973 western, High Plains Drifter, resolves its storyline by means of a series of unfolding flashback narratives (although ambiguity still remains), Pale Rider does not include any such obvious clues to the nature and past of the Preacher other than six bullet wound scars on his back and his relationship with Stockburn, who claims he once knew a man like the Preacher. Viewers are left to draw their own conclusions regarding the overall story line and its meaning."

 

[Randy M.]

The Stunt Man (1980) dir. Richard Rush; starring Peter O'Toole, Barbara Hershey, Steve Railsback

If John Huston and Philip K. Dick had collaborated on a script during a time in which Dick was fairly happy on his meds ...

Well, sort of.

For reasons unknown until near the end, Cameron (Railsback) is on the run from the law when he stumbles into a crew of film-makers headed by the director, Eli (O'Toole). Eli has three days to finish filming his WWI epic before the local sheriff boots him out of the county for all the trouble the filming has caused, and his main stunt man, Burt, died doing a stunt. Eli adopts Cameron and talks him into taking Burt's place, and the new Burt hesitantly goes along partly to hide but mostly because he's smitten by Nina, the leading lady (Hershey).

I like Railsback as an actor and think he could have had a stronger career if not at least partially typecast in his breakout role of Charles Manson in Helter Skelter. His actor's palette includes a decent portion of vulnerability, but is particularly well stocked with fear, rage, paranoia and a sly, feral intelligence, all of which are displayed here, along with a fair amount of physical dexterity.

Hershey at this time had something of a wild child aura after her early '70s Barbara Seagull period and a fairly long partnership with David Carradine. And it works toward effect here, as Nina is driven to make films by her friendship with her idol, Eli, and comes across as rather flighty but sincere. But how much of that is acting?

This movie marked a bit of a comeback for O'Toole. My impression is that, after owning the '60s, the '70s weren't as strong for him. And you needed good actors to stand up to him. Eli is bigger than life and his finger is on the pulse not just of the movie but of every member of his crew, most of whom seem devoted to him, if occasionally skeptical of his intuition and aims. Eli seems to know everything that happens on his set, is aware of what everyone is thinking, even, and senses when change is needed and actors or crew need a nudge in a certain direction; he is not averse to manipulation, withholding information or goading.

The moral of the movie? I wonder if there's an allegorical underpinning here. We're all scripted and there may be some wiggle room for our actions, but don't expect to change the script's ultimate outcome and don't think you already know what that outcome is. Also, maybe, don't expect fair compensation for good work.

 

[Droflet]

I liked this movie. It had, amongst other things going for it, a terrific musical score. I recall that on the first day, O'Toole fronted Rush in his wardrobe for the character of Eli. It was identical to what Rush wore, down to the light meter dangling from his neck. It gave me, and undoubtedly Rush, a bit of a chuckle. BTW Randy, great review.

 

[Randy M.]

I liked this movie. It had, amongst other things going for it, a terrific musical score. I recall that on the first day, O'Toole fronted Rush in his wardrobe for the character of Eli. It was identical to what Rush wore, down to the light meter dangling from his neck. It gave me, and undoubtedly Rush, a bit of a chuckle. BTW Randy, great review.

Thanks. It's the first time I've seen the movie since the early '80s -- can't recall if I saw it at the theater or later on HBO -- and I was happy to see it held up pretty well.

 

[KGeo777]

I like Railsback too--he was mesmerizing as Manson. I wasn't a fan of the Stunt Man. As much as enjoy his Lifeforce performance, especially his kissing scene with Patrick Stewart, I feel he was miscast in that as the astronaut lead. He's too short for the space program.

O'Toole does nothing for me. He's kind of an eccentric UK Jimmy Stewart. I struggle to think of a movie I like him in. He did a number of films about troubled characters-(Lawrence, Lord Jim)-I'd rather watch a Michael Caine film.

But last night it was TONY ROME--a 1967 Frank Sinatra detective movie. I am not a Sinatra fan but he's pretty good in this role--it's very Sam Spade-like. Lots of snappy dialogue. "When you've been arrested as many times as me it's the same as going to law school."

 

[Dave]

The Stunt Man

I've also seen that film. I recognised it from your description, but I wasn't aware of the P K Dick connection before.