THE FLASH
7/10
"Smörgåsbord" styled super-hero effort from DC and director Andy Muschietti offers just enough heart to separate it from the typical Marvel cookie-cutter formula.
Despite his off-screen issues Ezra Miller gives an appealing performance as Barry Allen, who screws up the space time continuum after he tries to go back into the past to save his murdered mother. There he meets both Batman 89 (Michael Keaton) and Supergirl (the cute Sasha Calle, who hopefully gets another movie out of this), plus a younger version of himself, whom he also bestows with super-powers. The group is out to stop General Zod (Michael Shannon) on his apocalyptic arrival on Earth, but The Flash finds out that toying with the past carries its own set of consequences.
THE FLASH has a lot of entertaining, enjoyable elements going for it, from a disarming sense of humor to a script that actually builds up some genuine emotion. That latter component is why the DC movies, uneven as they've been, do offer the potential for more viewer engagement than the standard-issue Marvel formula, which has become so calculated that nearly every scene in their recent fare feels marginalized by focus groups and meddling studio executives.
Where the movie gets into trouble comes in its bloated running time (the trailer gave far too much away, seeing as the "search for Superman" encompasses a fairly big chunk of the plot) and, surprise surprise, a seemingly endless climax wherein characters pound on each other -- repeatedly. The narrative point is made quickly but the film drags on interminably through these scenes -- just as it does in so many genre entries.
That's too bad because the opportunity was lost here to really craft a super-hero movie with some heart and soul -- instead, Keaton's involvement, while welcome, doesn't have much of a pay-off, and the "multiverse" cameos are let down by some terrible, video-game leveled CGI.
There is a terrific cameo at the end I didn't see coming, and even though that's diminished by some obvious editorial fix-ups (as Miller's clearly not even sharing the same scene with this actor), it gives this odd "inbetweener" entry, meant to serve as a bridge between the Zach Snyder and upcoming James Gunn DC "eras," a nice send-off. THE FLASH is ultimately a little too long to really hit the target but there's enough here to make it, at least, one of the more likeable super-hero movies in some time.
PS - Though it's not a score I would buy on its own, Benjamin Wallfisch's effort here is likewise commendable. Using a big orchestra and eschewing a heavy amount of Zimmer-styled synths, Wallfisch serves up a pastiche that bounces around an obvious Back to the Future homage, Elfman's Batman theme, and some nifty flourishes of his own. There's far too much score in the movie but it's well-done for what it is (again I would place it far over any Marvel soundtrack).
rate the last movie you saw
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AndyDursin
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Paul MacLean
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Re: rate the last movie you saw
Slash/Back (8/10)
Derivative but likable little indie, set in a tiny, remote community in Northern Canada, in which a small band of Inuit girls attempt to thwart an alien invasion.
Plot-wise, it is kind of a lower-budget, less-violent blend of The Thing and Predator, but I give this film points for its sincerity, its decent effects work, its three-dimensional characters and often-sweet and touching tone. Shooting in the dramatic landscapes of Baffin Island also gives the film an impressive scope. The opening credits are presented in both English and Inuktitut, which is a nice touch.
The main cast are obviously not professional actors, but despite their somewhat-lacking diction they are believable -- particularly Tasiana Shirley as the main character Maika. Worth a look!
Derivative but likable little indie, set in a tiny, remote community in Northern Canada, in which a small band of Inuit girls attempt to thwart an alien invasion.
Plot-wise, it is kind of a lower-budget, less-violent blend of The Thing and Predator, but I give this film points for its sincerity, its decent effects work, its three-dimensional characters and often-sweet and touching tone. Shooting in the dramatic landscapes of Baffin Island also gives the film an impressive scope. The opening credits are presented in both English and Inuktitut, which is a nice touch.
The main cast are obviously not professional actors, but despite their somewhat-lacking diction they are believable -- particularly Tasiana Shirley as the main character Maika. Worth a look!
Last edited by Paul MacLean on Sat Aug 26, 2023 1:47 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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AndyDursin
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Re: rate the last movie you saw
THE MEG 2 - THE TRENCH
5/10
Water-logged shark sequel starts off fine and concludes with a reasonably fun 20 minute finale — but everything inbetween is a dull, lifelessly directed affair.
Jason Statham and about half the original cast — plus their writers — return for another go-around though not, tellingly, director Jon Turtletaub, who’s replaced here — ineffectively — by British indie horror auteur Ben Wheatley. Wheatley struggles to get any tension going during the movie’s endless mid-section in “The Trench” where Statham and friends run afoul of an evil corporation mining for precious materials along the bottom of the dangerous ocean floor — in fact, it’s so bland the actors look like they’re wandering through sets and delivering lines with the least amount of energy possible given their supposedly dire circumstances. The dark sets, unexciting creatures, and lack of suspense might even make you feel like you’re watching a rerun of “Leviathan” — only not as good (is that even possible?).
Once things return to the surface, the movie reasonably recycles the effects-filled conclusion of its predecessor with a few additional prehistoric beasties on land as the tourist-saturated “Fun Island” is besieged by multiple “Megs” — finally delivering the absurd action fans expect (and there are a couple of fun homages to “Jaws 2”), but it’s all too long in coming to offset the tedium that came before. It also leads you to wonder — why not just set this sequel completely there to begin with? Why not have fun with the premise and have Statham be running the resort or something absurd along those lines? “Meg 2” shows so little ingenuity and cinematic energy that it comes off as nearly a contractual obligation for all involved — a sequel almost completely without bite.
5/10
Water-logged shark sequel starts off fine and concludes with a reasonably fun 20 minute finale — but everything inbetween is a dull, lifelessly directed affair.
Jason Statham and about half the original cast — plus their writers — return for another go-around though not, tellingly, director Jon Turtletaub, who’s replaced here — ineffectively — by British indie horror auteur Ben Wheatley. Wheatley struggles to get any tension going during the movie’s endless mid-section in “The Trench” where Statham and friends run afoul of an evil corporation mining for precious materials along the bottom of the dangerous ocean floor — in fact, it’s so bland the actors look like they’re wandering through sets and delivering lines with the least amount of energy possible given their supposedly dire circumstances. The dark sets, unexciting creatures, and lack of suspense might even make you feel like you’re watching a rerun of “Leviathan” — only not as good (is that even possible?).
Once things return to the surface, the movie reasonably recycles the effects-filled conclusion of its predecessor with a few additional prehistoric beasties on land as the tourist-saturated “Fun Island” is besieged by multiple “Megs” — finally delivering the absurd action fans expect (and there are a couple of fun homages to “Jaws 2”), but it’s all too long in coming to offset the tedium that came before. It also leads you to wonder — why not just set this sequel completely there to begin with? Why not have fun with the premise and have Statham be running the resort or something absurd along those lines? “Meg 2” shows so little ingenuity and cinematic energy that it comes off as nearly a contractual obligation for all involved — a sequel almost completely without bite.
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Eric Paddon
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Re: rate the last movie you saw
The Paper Chase (1973) 7 of 10
-The title will never get a Blu-Ray release in the US but thankfully there was a region free Blu-Ray last year in Europe that I managed to pick up. Definite improvement over the ancient DVD (a useless R2 DVD is also included in the set). I've seen it a couple times before but the movie has always been harder for me to connect with since I was a big fan of the TV series when it was given a new lease on life after its cancellation through PBS repeats which in turn led to its revival on Showtime. For me, it's hard to shake the image of James Stephens as Hart and the rest of the TV series regulars who were giving us more likable personable characters whereas in the movie, there is a rough-edge quality to many of the students and Timothy Bottoms I think doesn't quite register the quality of midwestern innocence that Stephens was brilliant at in the TV series.
But I tried to at least view the film on its own terms and not think about the TV series as I watched and it turned out to be a great film about the travails of being a first year law student. But the relationship between Hart and Professor Kingsfield's daughter (Lindsay Wagner) comes off too much as a contrivance. Her role is basically to act as a Greek chorus counterpoint to Hart about his obsession with grades and wanting some kind of validation from her father, who only sees him as one of thousands of faceless students that he can never get close to in any way. It's never about the prospect of any future for them together. The film of course is just copycatting the novel (which is a lot more coarse and was toned down for the film) so it's dealing with a built-in-flaw to begin with, but it's a problem that sticks out for me the more I analyze it and offers a reminder of why the TV series did the concept much better and was allowed to reach a natural conclusion of Hart finally graduating and looking back on his experience.
Of course "The Paper Chase" was responsible for changing John Houseman's life at age 70 and soon afterwards he was always playing some variant of Professor Kingsfield in everything else he ever did. So the film is important from that standpoint too (a commentary by the producer from 20 years ago mentions that Paul Scofield was the first actor he contacted but he had to turn it down because of a theater commitment). It's also a nice example of the kind of small intimate score John Williams could do.
-The title will never get a Blu-Ray release in the US but thankfully there was a region free Blu-Ray last year in Europe that I managed to pick up. Definite improvement over the ancient DVD (a useless R2 DVD is also included in the set). I've seen it a couple times before but the movie has always been harder for me to connect with since I was a big fan of the TV series when it was given a new lease on life after its cancellation through PBS repeats which in turn led to its revival on Showtime. For me, it's hard to shake the image of James Stephens as Hart and the rest of the TV series regulars who were giving us more likable personable characters whereas in the movie, there is a rough-edge quality to many of the students and Timothy Bottoms I think doesn't quite register the quality of midwestern innocence that Stephens was brilliant at in the TV series.
But I tried to at least view the film on its own terms and not think about the TV series as I watched and it turned out to be a great film about the travails of being a first year law student. But the relationship between Hart and Professor Kingsfield's daughter (Lindsay Wagner) comes off too much as a contrivance. Her role is basically to act as a Greek chorus counterpoint to Hart about his obsession with grades and wanting some kind of validation from her father, who only sees him as one of thousands of faceless students that he can never get close to in any way. It's never about the prospect of any future for them together. The film of course is just copycatting the novel (which is a lot more coarse and was toned down for the film) so it's dealing with a built-in-flaw to begin with, but it's a problem that sticks out for me the more I analyze it and offers a reminder of why the TV series did the concept much better and was allowed to reach a natural conclusion of Hart finally graduating and looking back on his experience.
Of course "The Paper Chase" was responsible for changing John Houseman's life at age 70 and soon afterwards he was always playing some variant of Professor Kingsfield in everything else he ever did. So the film is important from that standpoint too (a commentary by the producer from 20 years ago mentions that Paul Scofield was the first actor he contacted but he had to turn it down because of a theater commitment). It's also a nice example of the kind of small intimate score John Williams could do.
Re: rate the last movie you saw
DUEL - 7/10
Spielberg's first theatrical movie (albiet in Europe, it started as an US TV movie of the week), is an outstanding little thriller. It's too bad they don't make things like this- full of brightly lit cinematography, practical effects, and a simple story that leaves a lot up to the imagination.
Dennis Weaver is a guy on a business trip in his car through the CA deserts who, for unknown reasons, is targeted by a dirty, mean looking semi truck. You never see the driver, except for his arm and his boots. A great chase movie, with some small stops along the way. One is set in a diner, and features a wonderful, long single take of Weaver. It probably lasts 2 minutes. There are lots of interesting shots throughout the movie, framing things through small gaps in the truck, or in a washing machine window.
Very low budget, but you can't tell. The interview with Spielberg is also top-notch. He had the entire movie plotted out, hand-drawn, like a road map. That would be cool to see. (I think the new 4k set has it)
Spielberg's first theatrical movie (albiet in Europe, it started as an US TV movie of the week), is an outstanding little thriller. It's too bad they don't make things like this- full of brightly lit cinematography, practical effects, and a simple story that leaves a lot up to the imagination.
Dennis Weaver is a guy on a business trip in his car through the CA deserts who, for unknown reasons, is targeted by a dirty, mean looking semi truck. You never see the driver, except for his arm and his boots. A great chase movie, with some small stops along the way. One is set in a diner, and features a wonderful, long single take of Weaver. It probably lasts 2 minutes. There are lots of interesting shots throughout the movie, framing things through small gaps in the truck, or in a washing machine window.
Very low budget, but you can't tell. The interview with Spielberg is also top-notch. He had the entire movie plotted out, hand-drawn, like a road map. That would be cool to see. (I think the new 4k set has it)
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Eric Paddon
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Re: rate the last movie you saw
The first dud from my most recent Kino sales purchases.
The Big Bus (1976) 2 of 10
-Utterly, painfully not funny. I remember seeing just part of it on TV once in the early 80s on Channel 11 and remembered a little bit but until the sale never revisited it. Unlike "Airplane" which landed as a disaster movie satire, this one misses the mark completely especially with a lame topical gag about cannibalism that had to be explained to me on the commentary concerning the 1976 movie "Survive". I got a reminder of why I HATED Stuart Margolin every time he showed up on "Rockford Files", and Joseph Bologna isn't exactly the brightest choice for a lead either (Robert Hays was no big name but at least he brought a likable everyman quality in "Airplane" that helped which Bologna totally lacks). Another problem is every time I see John Beck, I see a guy who was one of the most horrifyingly evil guest villains on "Hawaii Five-O" when he played a washed out cop probationary using his old uniform so he can have an easy time raping women. So when he's being funny or doing anything else, I can't shake the connection since I never had regular exposure to the rest of his work. That's not the fault of the filmmakers, but adding that on top of the other problems this film has, it's no wonder it didn't land and I doubt I would have laughed even if I'd had an audience with me.
The commentary was okay and thankfully I've been doing better hearing ones that don't go off-tangent into politics of late. Interestingly they missed the musical inside joke when Rene Auberjonois's doubting priest suddenly has his "faith" moment and David Shire serves up a knock-off of Rozsa's Christ theme from "Ben Hur" to accompany the scene.
The Big Bus (1976) 2 of 10
-Utterly, painfully not funny. I remember seeing just part of it on TV once in the early 80s on Channel 11 and remembered a little bit but until the sale never revisited it. Unlike "Airplane" which landed as a disaster movie satire, this one misses the mark completely especially with a lame topical gag about cannibalism that had to be explained to me on the commentary concerning the 1976 movie "Survive". I got a reminder of why I HATED Stuart Margolin every time he showed up on "Rockford Files", and Joseph Bologna isn't exactly the brightest choice for a lead either (Robert Hays was no big name but at least he brought a likable everyman quality in "Airplane" that helped which Bologna totally lacks). Another problem is every time I see John Beck, I see a guy who was one of the most horrifyingly evil guest villains on "Hawaii Five-O" when he played a washed out cop probationary using his old uniform so he can have an easy time raping women. So when he's being funny or doing anything else, I can't shake the connection since I never had regular exposure to the rest of his work. That's not the fault of the filmmakers, but adding that on top of the other problems this film has, it's no wonder it didn't land and I doubt I would have laughed even if I'd had an audience with me.
The commentary was okay and thankfully I've been doing better hearing ones that don't go off-tangent into politics of late. Interestingly they missed the musical inside joke when Rene Auberjonois's doubting priest suddenly has his "faith" moment and David Shire serves up a knock-off of Rozsa's Christ theme from "Ben Hur" to accompany the scene.
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Eric Paddon
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Re: rate the last movie you saw
Circus World (1964) 7.5 of 10
-The last of the Samuel Bronston epic films before his company went bankrupt thanks to the failure of this and before that of "Fall Of The Roman Empire". John Wayne stars in basically a splashy European version of "The Greatest Show On Earth" set in the turn of the century. The melodrama storyline is relatively thin but gets boosted thanks to the Bronston scale of spectacle that includes not only well photographed acts in widescreen (whereas Greatest Show On Earth was the year before the debut of widescreen) bit also two spectacular disaster set pieces, first when the circus ship capsizes in the dock and later when a fire breaks out and threatens to destroy the just about to open circus performance). All of it is full-scale, no-CGI and the animals are all real too and while this might not have seemed too impressive in 1964 today it ends up being more impressive.
-The film had a Laser Disc release but has been missing in action on DVD and domestic Blu-Ray. There was a HD restoration in 2012 though and a Blu-Ray release in Europe and I got hold of a torrent derived from that source. It looks absolutely spectacular and frankly it has the effect of boosting the film's rating which really only deserves a 6 to an extra point just because of the improvement. Even if we never get a US Blu-Ray release, this will more than suffice. "Greatest Show On Earth" is ultimately still the better of the two circus film, but the two taken together are enjoyable if you want to see what's now become a vanished part of our culture (thanks to PC obsessions) preserved on film.
-The last of the Samuel Bronston epic films before his company went bankrupt thanks to the failure of this and before that of "Fall Of The Roman Empire". John Wayne stars in basically a splashy European version of "The Greatest Show On Earth" set in the turn of the century. The melodrama storyline is relatively thin but gets boosted thanks to the Bronston scale of spectacle that includes not only well photographed acts in widescreen (whereas Greatest Show On Earth was the year before the debut of widescreen) bit also two spectacular disaster set pieces, first when the circus ship capsizes in the dock and later when a fire breaks out and threatens to destroy the just about to open circus performance). All of it is full-scale, no-CGI and the animals are all real too and while this might not have seemed too impressive in 1964 today it ends up being more impressive.
-The film had a Laser Disc release but has been missing in action on DVD and domestic Blu-Ray. There was a HD restoration in 2012 though and a Blu-Ray release in Europe and I got hold of a torrent derived from that source. It looks absolutely spectacular and frankly it has the effect of boosting the film's rating which really only deserves a 6 to an extra point just because of the improvement. Even if we never get a US Blu-Ray release, this will more than suffice. "Greatest Show On Earth" is ultimately still the better of the two circus film, but the two taken together are enjoyable if you want to see what's now become a vanished part of our culture (thanks to PC obsessions) preserved on film.
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Eric Paddon
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Re: rate the last movie you saw
Two For The Seesaw (1962) 4 of 10
-This was a hit play on stage in 1958 with Henry Fonda and Anne Bancroft. It's because it was a hit play that the movie ends up being largely a giant snoozefest because Robert Wise, in the film he did in-between "West Side Story" and "The Haunting" didn't show the slightest flare for how to open up the material apart from an opening credits sequence showing the sights of New York. The action is largely claustrophobic set inside two cramped apartments and we're forced to rely on the stagy dialogue in this tale of the unlikely doomed romance of about-to-be divorced Omaha laywer Robert Mitchum and the free-spirited Bronx Jewish dancer Shirley MacLaine. I'm sure Henry Fonda, who was really from Nebraska was great on stage, but Mitchum is terribly miscast in the part of a middle-American who has spent his life taking from others to his detriment (it's impossible to believe he ever could have been stuck in a marriage where he suffered from a failure to assert himself). MacLaine is okay but it's clear her casting was based on the success of "The Apartment" and she doesn't come off as authentically Jewish. WIth the two leads miscast, it ends up making their characters and their plight that is the lynchpin of the proceedings not very interesting and at 120 minutes and a lack of opening up the action to take advantage of the canvas of New York, tedious and dull. The film was a box office failure and only got a single Oscar nomination in the Best Song category (and to be honest, I didn't even notice it) but it did result in Mitchum and MacLaine having a long-term affair. I imagine they had better chemistry off-screen than they do on-screen (maybe pairing her with Jack Lemmon again would have helped. It's probably no coincidence her next film reunited her with Lemmon in "Irma La Douce").
-This was a hit play on stage in 1958 with Henry Fonda and Anne Bancroft. It's because it was a hit play that the movie ends up being largely a giant snoozefest because Robert Wise, in the film he did in-between "West Side Story" and "The Haunting" didn't show the slightest flare for how to open up the material apart from an opening credits sequence showing the sights of New York. The action is largely claustrophobic set inside two cramped apartments and we're forced to rely on the stagy dialogue in this tale of the unlikely doomed romance of about-to-be divorced Omaha laywer Robert Mitchum and the free-spirited Bronx Jewish dancer Shirley MacLaine. I'm sure Henry Fonda, who was really from Nebraska was great on stage, but Mitchum is terribly miscast in the part of a middle-American who has spent his life taking from others to his detriment (it's impossible to believe he ever could have been stuck in a marriage where he suffered from a failure to assert himself). MacLaine is okay but it's clear her casting was based on the success of "The Apartment" and she doesn't come off as authentically Jewish. WIth the two leads miscast, it ends up making their characters and their plight that is the lynchpin of the proceedings not very interesting and at 120 minutes and a lack of opening up the action to take advantage of the canvas of New York, tedious and dull. The film was a box office failure and only got a single Oscar nomination in the Best Song category (and to be honest, I didn't even notice it) but it did result in Mitchum and MacLaine having a long-term affair. I imagine they had better chemistry off-screen than they do on-screen (maybe pairing her with Jack Lemmon again would have helped. It's probably no coincidence her next film reunited her with Lemmon in "Irma La Douce").
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Eric Paddon
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Re: rate the last movie you saw
Tender Mercies (1983) 9 of 10
-I'd never seen this movie before tonight. The chief reason is because I never figured it would be of much interest to me because I am not a fan of country music and just never felt I'd be able to connect with a story about a country singer. I can see that I gypped myself for all these years because this is a human story that is universal and the country music aspect is just the setting. This may be the only film of modern Hollywood I have ever seen that actually treats people of faith from the heartland with respect and not elitist mocking parody. And the struggle of Duvall is something people of faith like myself relate to in that even as we can receive new blessings in life as we learn to redeem ourselves, we will not be spared from further pain and anguish as of course happens with a sudden jolt near the climax of the film. The ending for some reason reminded me of the brilliant ending of the television version of "Shadowlands" that was also faith affirming after a tragedy but in a quiet, understated way that an intelligent person of faith can easily pick up on.
-I'll never be a fan of country music, but I am now a fan of this film. Honestly, given how angry I've been regarding things in this country this was the right thing for me to stumble into watching.
-I'd never seen this movie before tonight. The chief reason is because I never figured it would be of much interest to me because I am not a fan of country music and just never felt I'd be able to connect with a story about a country singer. I can see that I gypped myself for all these years because this is a human story that is universal and the country music aspect is just the setting. This may be the only film of modern Hollywood I have ever seen that actually treats people of faith from the heartland with respect and not elitist mocking parody. And the struggle of Duvall is something people of faith like myself relate to in that even as we can receive new blessings in life as we learn to redeem ourselves, we will not be spared from further pain and anguish as of course happens with a sudden jolt near the climax of the film. The ending for some reason reminded me of the brilliant ending of the television version of "Shadowlands" that was also faith affirming after a tragedy but in a quiet, understated way that an intelligent person of faith can easily pick up on.
-I'll never be a fan of country music, but I am now a fan of this film. Honestly, given how angry I've been regarding things in this country this was the right thing for me to stumble into watching.
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AndyDursin
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Re: rate the last movie you saw
4 for the price of a single post!
BLUE BEETLE
7/10
Another mildly enjoyable comic book genre exercise although there's little fresh that breaks it from the usual formula. Xolo Mariduena from "Cobra Kai" is likeable and has plenty of charisma in the lead, though too much of the film's plot is carried by his character's extended family members -- taking away Mariduena's screen time and significance as a result. There are still some laughs and director Angel Manuel Soto incorporates enough ethnic Latino touches to distinguish a movie that's otherwise pretty vanilla in terms of its super-hero story line -- certainly Theo enjoyed it (this is basically the first super hero movie he's seen in theaters outside the Spider-Verse), but if you're looking for a break from formula it's not here. The picture hits on all the same, expected beats and special effects you've seen before, keeping character development at a minimum, and ending with, as usual, our hero beating people up in dimly lit corridors for X amount of minutes.
One upside is the picture seems to exist in its own time and place, and isn't there to set up a dozen future movies. Not bad, but if audiences are growing tired of the formula, one can't blame them.
GORGO (1960)
8/10
Vinegar Syndrome's new 4K UHD restoration is nothing short of STUNNING, showing Technicolor hues probably unseen since its theatrical run, which means this is the first time I've experienced this 1960 monster favorite like this. The image adds immeasurably to the entertainment value, with rich color and high detail. Highly recommended.
THREE INTO TWO WON'T GO (1969)
5/10
Tale of a dysfunctional marriage circa the late '60s starring Rod Steiger as a philandering British husband who hooks up with young hitchhiker Judy Geeson. Unfortunately (?) for Steiger, she decides to hang around town, taking a job as a maid and subsequently walking over to his new home where his (already) unhappy wife (Claire Bloom) awaits. Peter Hall directed this seldom-circulated, UK-made Universal release, which takes an awful long time to put all its cards on the table and ends right when it's getting interesting. As a result, this domestic drama comes off as interesting but not altogether satisfying, though Steiger, who always had a tendency to ham it up, keeps himself in check for the most part. Francis Lai's score is pleasant and Peggy Ashcroft offers strong support as Bloom's mother.
Kino Lorber's Blu-Ray is out this week featuring a TV version with padded, newly shot scenes featuring Geeson's family trying to find her whereabouts.
THE LAWYER (1970)
6/10
Barry Newman IS tough Harvard educated lawyer Anthony Petrocelli, who leaves the big city for the rural southwest and a murder case involving a local, prominent doctor's wife that closely echoes the same "Sheppard murder case" that inspired "The Fugitive."
Sidney J. Furie's film hasn't ever been released on home video that I'm aware of but is now available as part of Imprint's pricey "Sidney J. Furie Collection" Blu-Ray box. This movie didn't apparently make much of a mark in theaters (to put it mildly) but did lead to a two-season network TV series, "Petrocelli," with Newman reprising his role several years after its release.
"The Lawyer" will probably be of interest for those who remember that show, but as a self-contained movie, it's not very good. The plodding pace is a drawback as is the unnecessarily convoluted script, which puts too much of an emphasis on the plot. Newman is strong, but other roles are oddly cast, including a very ineffective Harold Gould as a local lawyer, and it's all capped by one of the most repetitive, infuriating scores I've ever heard by Marcus Dodds -- buried within the period's "pop" sensibilities by a Bacharach-styled main theme, repeated to no end throughout the film, plus hilariously formulaic "twangy" guitars meant to underscore its setting.
A curio that doesn't rank with Furie's best work, displaying little of the director's visual finesse that marked his earlier '60s output ("The Ipcress File" especially).
BLUE BEETLE
7/10
Another mildly enjoyable comic book genre exercise although there's little fresh that breaks it from the usual formula. Xolo Mariduena from "Cobra Kai" is likeable and has plenty of charisma in the lead, though too much of the film's plot is carried by his character's extended family members -- taking away Mariduena's screen time and significance as a result. There are still some laughs and director Angel Manuel Soto incorporates enough ethnic Latino touches to distinguish a movie that's otherwise pretty vanilla in terms of its super-hero story line -- certainly Theo enjoyed it (this is basically the first super hero movie he's seen in theaters outside the Spider-Verse), but if you're looking for a break from formula it's not here. The picture hits on all the same, expected beats and special effects you've seen before, keeping character development at a minimum, and ending with, as usual, our hero beating people up in dimly lit corridors for X amount of minutes.
One upside is the picture seems to exist in its own time and place, and isn't there to set up a dozen future movies. Not bad, but if audiences are growing tired of the formula, one can't blame them.
GORGO (1960)
8/10
Vinegar Syndrome's new 4K UHD restoration is nothing short of STUNNING, showing Technicolor hues probably unseen since its theatrical run, which means this is the first time I've experienced this 1960 monster favorite like this. The image adds immeasurably to the entertainment value, with rich color and high detail. Highly recommended.
THREE INTO TWO WON'T GO (1969)
5/10
Tale of a dysfunctional marriage circa the late '60s starring Rod Steiger as a philandering British husband who hooks up with young hitchhiker Judy Geeson. Unfortunately (?) for Steiger, she decides to hang around town, taking a job as a maid and subsequently walking over to his new home where his (already) unhappy wife (Claire Bloom) awaits. Peter Hall directed this seldom-circulated, UK-made Universal release, which takes an awful long time to put all its cards on the table and ends right when it's getting interesting. As a result, this domestic drama comes off as interesting but not altogether satisfying, though Steiger, who always had a tendency to ham it up, keeps himself in check for the most part. Francis Lai's score is pleasant and Peggy Ashcroft offers strong support as Bloom's mother.
Kino Lorber's Blu-Ray is out this week featuring a TV version with padded, newly shot scenes featuring Geeson's family trying to find her whereabouts.
THE LAWYER (1970)
6/10
Barry Newman IS tough Harvard educated lawyer Anthony Petrocelli, who leaves the big city for the rural southwest and a murder case involving a local, prominent doctor's wife that closely echoes the same "Sheppard murder case" that inspired "The Fugitive."
Sidney J. Furie's film hasn't ever been released on home video that I'm aware of but is now available as part of Imprint's pricey "Sidney J. Furie Collection" Blu-Ray box. This movie didn't apparently make much of a mark in theaters (to put it mildly) but did lead to a two-season network TV series, "Petrocelli," with Newman reprising his role several years after its release.
"The Lawyer" will probably be of interest for those who remember that show, but as a self-contained movie, it's not very good. The plodding pace is a drawback as is the unnecessarily convoluted script, which puts too much of an emphasis on the plot. Newman is strong, but other roles are oddly cast, including a very ineffective Harold Gould as a local lawyer, and it's all capped by one of the most repetitive, infuriating scores I've ever heard by Marcus Dodds -- buried within the period's "pop" sensibilities by a Bacharach-styled main theme, repeated to no end throughout the film, plus hilariously formulaic "twangy" guitars meant to underscore its setting.
A curio that doesn't rank with Furie's best work, displaying little of the director's visual finesse that marked his earlier '60s output ("The Ipcress File" especially).
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AndyDursin
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Re: rate the last movie you saw
LEGEND OF ZORRO
6/10
Watched the 4K of this with Theo last night and....it's not even as good as I remember it being.
Terrible script by Orci and Kurtzman (there's a shocker) comes up with a hugely contrived way of separating Banderas and Zeta Jones while cultivating an otherwise episodic number of subplots that kind of fizzle. You feel like you're watching a bland TV movie at times, with only the cinematography and James Horner's score reminding you it's a sequel to its far, far better predecessor.
Banderas even looks tired in this movie, too -- either that or the 4K is just too sharp for its own good!
6/10
Watched the 4K of this with Theo last night and....it's not even as good as I remember it being.
Terrible script by Orci and Kurtzman (there's a shocker) comes up with a hugely contrived way of separating Banderas and Zeta Jones while cultivating an otherwise episodic number of subplots that kind of fizzle. You feel like you're watching a bland TV movie at times, with only the cinematography and James Horner's score reminding you it's a sequel to its far, far better predecessor.
Banderas even looks tired in this movie, too -- either that or the 4K is just too sharp for its own good!
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Paul MacLean
- Posts: 7062
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- Location: New York
Re: rate the last movie you saw
I saw The Legend of Zorro, but I honestly can't remember much about it.
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Paul MacLean
- Posts: 7062
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- Location: New York
Re: rate the last movie you saw
Crazy Rich Asians (7.5/10)
This is a sweet and appealing enough movie, but essentially a retelling of that old chestnut -- the prince who falls in love with the peasant girl and faces disinheritance from disapproving elders unless he gives her up. Transposing it to modern-day Singapore does make for an interesting twist though, and I appreciate how it addresses the bigotry which Asian Americans sometimes face from people who live in Asia (I have a good friend who was born in the US to Korean immigrants, and was ostracized by native Koreans when her family moved back to Seoul). In all, a likeable film, but one that doesn't reinvent the wheel as much as some people suppose.
Tår (3/10)
This is a genuinely odd — and off-putting — movie. The story isn't really anything special, that of a brilliant but frosty, autocratic conductor (and self-described "U-Haul lesbian"), Lydia Tar (Cate Blanchet), whose opportunistic behavior and roving eye result in her professional and personal downfall. The script is very talky -- more stage play than screenplay, and much of the film is slow-paced and more drawn-out than necessary. I was even tempted to quit in the very first scene, which consists of a long-winded, seemingly endless interview with Lydia by Adam Gopnik (who cameos as himself). Whatever uniqueness the film possesses is down to the visual style -- which I found affected, dispassionate and vague. Writer-director Todd Field seems influenced by Denis Villeneuve, with a similar fondness for, lets say leisurely pacing, and a similarly austere, static visual style.
Field works overtime to sell Tar as as "insider's view" of the classical music world, but despite all the name-dropping, it doesn’t ring true, and the story feels like a mere soap opera -- albeit one presented in a clinical, dispassionate way. Are we supposed to sympathize with the main character, or hate her? The film is never specific enough in her characterization to establish it one way or the other. (Her slow meltdown toward the climax of the film does however furnish a few unintentional laughs.)
But Lydia’s dismissive line where she busts on Jerry Goldsmith -- for ripping-off Bartok in Planet of the Apes -- was the nail in the coffin for me.
The Specialist (8/10)
I don’t care what the critics or Rotten Tomatoes say, The Specialist a hugely entertaining movie, and a taut, effective thriller and love story. Yeah, it’s also campy at times — but that only adds to the fun as far as I’m concerned.
The performances are first-rate. Sylvester Stallone is focused and brooding as the protagonist, while Sharon Stone believably portrays a revenge-driven yet terrified leading lady. James Woods turns-in some of his best work as the villain -- a despicable, vendetta-driven opportunist (Woods is also frequently hilarious).
John Barry’s score is my favorite of his post-Dances With Wolves efforts, with one of his most gorgeous and sultry love themes. Barry’s years of experience scoring Bond movies is put to good use here, as he deftly reconciles the thriller, romantic and camp elements, helping cement them into a cohesive whole.
This is a sweet and appealing enough movie, but essentially a retelling of that old chestnut -- the prince who falls in love with the peasant girl and faces disinheritance from disapproving elders unless he gives her up. Transposing it to modern-day Singapore does make for an interesting twist though, and I appreciate how it addresses the bigotry which Asian Americans sometimes face from people who live in Asia (I have a good friend who was born in the US to Korean immigrants, and was ostracized by native Koreans when her family moved back to Seoul). In all, a likeable film, but one that doesn't reinvent the wheel as much as some people suppose.
Tår (3/10)
This is a genuinely odd — and off-putting — movie. The story isn't really anything special, that of a brilliant but frosty, autocratic conductor (and self-described "U-Haul lesbian"), Lydia Tar (Cate Blanchet), whose opportunistic behavior and roving eye result in her professional and personal downfall. The script is very talky -- more stage play than screenplay, and much of the film is slow-paced and more drawn-out than necessary. I was even tempted to quit in the very first scene, which consists of a long-winded, seemingly endless interview with Lydia by Adam Gopnik (who cameos as himself). Whatever uniqueness the film possesses is down to the visual style -- which I found affected, dispassionate and vague. Writer-director Todd Field seems influenced by Denis Villeneuve, with a similar fondness for, lets say leisurely pacing, and a similarly austere, static visual style.
Field works overtime to sell Tar as as "insider's view" of the classical music world, but despite all the name-dropping, it doesn’t ring true, and the story feels like a mere soap opera -- albeit one presented in a clinical, dispassionate way. Are we supposed to sympathize with the main character, or hate her? The film is never specific enough in her characterization to establish it one way or the other. (Her slow meltdown toward the climax of the film does however furnish a few unintentional laughs.)
But Lydia’s dismissive line where she busts on Jerry Goldsmith -- for ripping-off Bartok in Planet of the Apes -- was the nail in the coffin for me.
The Specialist (8/10)
I don’t care what the critics or Rotten Tomatoes say, The Specialist a hugely entertaining movie, and a taut, effective thriller and love story. Yeah, it’s also campy at times — but that only adds to the fun as far as I’m concerned.
The performances are first-rate. Sylvester Stallone is focused and brooding as the protagonist, while Sharon Stone believably portrays a revenge-driven yet terrified leading lady. James Woods turns-in some of his best work as the villain -- a despicable, vendetta-driven opportunist (Woods is also frequently hilarious).
John Barry’s score is my favorite of his post-Dances With Wolves efforts, with one of his most gorgeous and sultry love themes. Barry’s years of experience scoring Bond movies is put to good use here, as he deftly reconciles the thriller, romantic and camp elements, helping cement them into a cohesive whole.
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Paul MacLean
- Posts: 7062
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- Location: New York
Re: rate the last movie you saw
Women Talking (3/10)
You certainly can't accuse this film's title of false advertising. Women Talking is precisely that -- an hour and forty minutes of actresses performing static dialog scenes. It also has all the earmarks of the Academy's current criteria for a Best Picture nominee: it is well-acted, but is also didactic, drenched in an anti-male feminist perspective, throws-in a trans character for good measure -- and no one went to see it (it grossed $9 million -- internationally).
Directed by Sarah Polley, who also wrote the script based on Miriam Toews' book of the same name, Women Talking is set in an unspecific, legalistically-religious (and male-dominated) agrarian community where women have no rights, girls are not educated and young boys can get away with raping the girls with no fear of any real punishment. Towes' story is loosely based on an incident in a Bolivian Mennonite colony in which over one-hundred girls were raped and impregnated over the course of two years (unlike the film, the real-life perpetrators went to prison).
The book (and film) center on the women of the community meeting to decide what should be done -- fight the men, leave their community, or do nothing. The women vote to leave. Then they spend the rest of film debating the repercussions of leaving, and describing what the males of their community have perpetrated.
One of the main problems with Woman Talking is that it is the work of women who don't really understand men. It is the third-wave feminist view of the world -- a world where religion fosters misogyny, and that the male nature is to violently subjugate the female. Tellingly, the one and only decent male character is the community's school teacher (Ben Wishart), who is gentle, passive and accommodating (i.e. the "ideal man" according to third-wave feminism).
There are also some weird, awkward touches to Women Talking. None of the dialog uses contractions, so everyone sounds like Tanya Roberts in Sheena. The female characters are also implausibly articulate, with excellent vocabularies considering none of them were taught to read or write. At one point a vehicle from the Census Bureau drives through the community, with a loudspeaker blasting the Monkees' "Daydream Believer".
Sarah Polley probably wasn't the best choice to adapt a story "inspired by true events", having spent her whole life in the entertainment business, with thus little contact with regular people.
Apart from all that, this is not so much a "film" as a recorded stage play. In fact we never actually see any of the violent acts perpetrated by the male characters. We merely hear the woman discussing these things. The script tells rather than shows -- and that is just not good screenwriting. Even within the limitations of script, the film's visual style is nothing more than perfunctory, which only makes the excessively verbose screenplay even more boring.
You certainly can't accuse this film's title of false advertising. Women Talking is precisely that -- an hour and forty minutes of actresses performing static dialog scenes. It also has all the earmarks of the Academy's current criteria for a Best Picture nominee: it is well-acted, but is also didactic, drenched in an anti-male feminist perspective, throws-in a trans character for good measure -- and no one went to see it (it grossed $9 million -- internationally).
Directed by Sarah Polley, who also wrote the script based on Miriam Toews' book of the same name, Women Talking is set in an unspecific, legalistically-religious (and male-dominated) agrarian community where women have no rights, girls are not educated and young boys can get away with raping the girls with no fear of any real punishment. Towes' story is loosely based on an incident in a Bolivian Mennonite colony in which over one-hundred girls were raped and impregnated over the course of two years (unlike the film, the real-life perpetrators went to prison).
The book (and film) center on the women of the community meeting to decide what should be done -- fight the men, leave their community, or do nothing. The women vote to leave. Then they spend the rest of film debating the repercussions of leaving, and describing what the males of their community have perpetrated.
One of the main problems with Woman Talking is that it is the work of women who don't really understand men. It is the third-wave feminist view of the world -- a world where religion fosters misogyny, and that the male nature is to violently subjugate the female. Tellingly, the one and only decent male character is the community's school teacher (Ben Wishart), who is gentle, passive and accommodating (i.e. the "ideal man" according to third-wave feminism).
There are also some weird, awkward touches to Women Talking. None of the dialog uses contractions, so everyone sounds like Tanya Roberts in Sheena. The female characters are also implausibly articulate, with excellent vocabularies considering none of them were taught to read or write. At one point a vehicle from the Census Bureau drives through the community, with a loudspeaker blasting the Monkees' "Daydream Believer".
Sarah Polley probably wasn't the best choice to adapt a story "inspired by true events", having spent her whole life in the entertainment business, with thus little contact with regular people. Apart from all that, this is not so much a "film" as a recorded stage play. In fact we never actually see any of the violent acts perpetrated by the male characters. We merely hear the woman discussing these things. The script tells rather than shows -- and that is just not good screenwriting. Even within the limitations of script, the film's visual style is nothing more than perfunctory, which only makes the excessively verbose screenplay even more boring.
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AndyDursin
- Posts: 34279
- Joined: Tue Oct 05, 2004 8:45 pm
- Location: RI
Re: rate the last movie you saw
THE EQUALIZER 3
8/10
Satisfying conclusion to this Denzel Washington update of the old Edward Woodward TV series is very much a western -- in fact, it's a much better reworking of familiar genre elements than this same creative team's misfired MAGNIFICENT SEVEN remake from a few years back.
Benefitting enormously from a change in setting, Denzel's Robert McCall here opens up his latest case of retribution in a Sicilian winery where he stumbles onto a stash of drugs the mob is funneling, providing, among other things, revenue for their illegitimate businesses and also cash for terrorists. After being shot, McCall is nursed back to health and becomes part of an Italian coastal community -- connected to its people and customs, and yet pressed back into duty (of course) once they're terrorized by other factions of the "Camorra." Meanwhile, McCall casually enlists the assistance of a young CIA analyst (Washington's "Man on Fire" co-star Dakota Fanning) who's intrigued by the mysterious former government op and his special set of skills.
Director Antoine Fuqua and writer Richard Wenk also return for "The Equalizer 3," which is easily the most soulful and character-driven of the three films in the "Equalizer" series. It has its moments of violence but these bursts are relegated only to several specific points in the film, where McCall basically functions like a horror movie villain, again serving up graphic vengeance with no suspense as to the outcome of his actions. That part of the movie proves to be the weakest -- it's as if the filmmakers had the least interest in continuing to serve up an obligatory amount of R-rated splatter -- but fortunately there's ample dramatic engagement here to keep audiences invested. The variation on the classic western formula of a gunslinger basically protecting his flock against villains, in a town (or, in this case, country) he's unattached to, is effectively cultivated in Wenk's script, while Fuqua and ace cinematographer Robert Richardson capture all the Amalfi coast locations with detail and local color.
The art of location filming is something that's been lost in our new "digital age," but "Equalizer 3" embraces its new setting and provides its hero with -- if not a breathless finale -- then a very moving one that connects back to its predecessors in a meaningful way.
8/10
Satisfying conclusion to this Denzel Washington update of the old Edward Woodward TV series is very much a western -- in fact, it's a much better reworking of familiar genre elements than this same creative team's misfired MAGNIFICENT SEVEN remake from a few years back.
Benefitting enormously from a change in setting, Denzel's Robert McCall here opens up his latest case of retribution in a Sicilian winery where he stumbles onto a stash of drugs the mob is funneling, providing, among other things, revenue for their illegitimate businesses and also cash for terrorists. After being shot, McCall is nursed back to health and becomes part of an Italian coastal community -- connected to its people and customs, and yet pressed back into duty (of course) once they're terrorized by other factions of the "Camorra." Meanwhile, McCall casually enlists the assistance of a young CIA analyst (Washington's "Man on Fire" co-star Dakota Fanning) who's intrigued by the mysterious former government op and his special set of skills.
Director Antoine Fuqua and writer Richard Wenk also return for "The Equalizer 3," which is easily the most soulful and character-driven of the three films in the "Equalizer" series. It has its moments of violence but these bursts are relegated only to several specific points in the film, where McCall basically functions like a horror movie villain, again serving up graphic vengeance with no suspense as to the outcome of his actions. That part of the movie proves to be the weakest -- it's as if the filmmakers had the least interest in continuing to serve up an obligatory amount of R-rated splatter -- but fortunately there's ample dramatic engagement here to keep audiences invested. The variation on the classic western formula of a gunslinger basically protecting his flock against villains, in a town (or, in this case, country) he's unattached to, is effectively cultivated in Wenk's script, while Fuqua and ace cinematographer Robert Richardson capture all the Amalfi coast locations with detail and local color.
The art of location filming is something that's been lost in our new "digital age," but "Equalizer 3" embraces its new setting and provides its hero with -- if not a breathless finale -- then a very moving one that connects back to its predecessors in a meaningful way.