What Was The Last Movie You Watched?

[Doctor Strange]

Fading, I agree on The Zookeeper's Wife. Normally I'll watch Jessica Chastain in anything, but I gave up on this flick after about twenty minutes. I just didn't believe it, and the film's tone immediately rubbed me the wrong way.

 

[Fading Fast]

Fading, I agree on The Zookeeper's Wife. Normally I'll watch Jessica Chastain in anything, but I gave up on this flick after about twenty minutes. I just didn't believe it, and the film's tone immediately rubbed me the wrong way.

Not believable is the perfect word. Even though - at least in theory - the broad construct of the story is true, the personal relationships rang false and the interactions with the Nazis - based on so many documented sources - rang very false. We stayed with it - you made the smarter choice.

 

[Fading Fast]

Two TCM regulars that I'm sure I've written about before, so just some quick thoughts (both with spoilers):

"The Manchurian Candidate" 1962

• Noted many times before, Sinatra can act when he wants to, in this one, he wants to

• Also, in a small but pivotal role, character actor John McGiver gives a powerful performance (the best of his I've seen - or remember)

• The "control" factor of the Queen of Hearts card seems hokier than I remember it being

• Why did Leslie Parrish - young, very pretty in a camera-friendly way and with reasonable acting skills - who kicked around Hollywood movies and TVs in the '50s and '60s, not have a truly successful career?

"Executive Suite" 1954

• Another example of "nothing is new" as the pivotal issue being debated in the company - as it looks to elect a new president - is short-term profits for shareholders via cost "controls" versus long-term planing and investing for the future health of the company for the benefit of all its "stakeholders" (not the word used, but the one we use today) of the employees, customers and stockholders. With only a few words changed, the crucial speech in the movie reflecting this could be delivered today

• I love that this is not a standard Hollywood "business is evil" movie nor is it an Ayn Rand "The Fountainhead" capitalist-as-hero stylized ideal, but a balanced view of what, at least my experience has been, really goes on inside companies: some really good people / some really bad people / a lot of okay people / politics / hard work / laziness / smart ideas / dumb ideas - basically, a very recognizable humanity that this movie does a good job of capturing

• For our '50s Ivy style clothing fans, William Holden's suits, shirts, ties, etc. are right out of the Brooks Brothers mid-50s Wall Street playbook

 

[belfastboy]

"Locke" with Tom Hardy
A brilliant movie. Shows what drama can be produced with good writing and a great actor. In my opinion Hardy is one of the best contemporary actors.

 

[3fingers]

With only a few words changed, the crucial speech in the movie reflecting this could be delivered today

Every generation has its buzzwords. It just seems like nowadays for many managers/executives there is no thought process behind them. The litany of buzzwords are a shabby facade hiding a hollow shell.

 

[LizzieMaine]

There is nothing -- bar nothing -- worse in the working world than having a boss who learned everything she knows about business from attending "management seminars."

 

[LizzieMaine]

Going back to short subjects with "Grand Slam Opera," a 1936 Educational Pictures two-reeler starring Buster Keaton.

In the 1920s, Educational Film Exchanges was the number one independent producer/distributor of short comedies -- producing its own shorts under the Mermaid, Tuxedo, and Coronet labels, and distributing those of other independents like Al Christie and Joe Rock. But the talkie era led to problems, and by the mid-thirties, Educational had given up distribution to sign a contract supplying short product to Fox, and had fallen to pretty much rock-bottom of the two-reeler business. Its comedies were shot on the cheap, featuring either novice talent that wouldn't stick around long or old-time comics who had worn out their welcome everywhere else. The films had a dingy, shopworn look that generally matched the quality of the material and the performances.

Such was the case for Buster Keaton when he signed with Educational in 1935. He'd been fired by MGM in 1933 after going on a frustrated rampage at the studio, and spent the next two years drifting in and out of an alcoholic haze before he dried out enough to go back to work. Finding all the major studio doors closed to him, he settled in with Educational figuring that he might have a chance to do his kind of comedy there -- and considering his condition and the cheap facilities available for production, his Educational shorts are surprisingly good.

There's a myth that Keaton never adjusted to talkies, fueled by his impaired performances in his last MGM features, but the Educational two-reelers show him finding a niche. They aren't up the standards of his silent work, but they do show the comedian finding ways to adapt to the demands of sound without giving up everything that made him special as a silent performer. One major adjustment is his comic persona -- instead of the determined workingman or the naive millionaire he played in silents, in these films he pretty much always appears as a country boob named Elmer Butts, who thru ingenuity always seems to find a way to get by. This role, while limiting, works well with Keaton's dark, raspy voice, and he's able to make the character both likeable and flexible enough to allow for bits of silent-type humor.

In "Grand Slam Opera," Elmer leaves his hick town to go to New York, where he plans to compete on "Colonel Crow's Amateur Night," a parody of the then-current Major Bowes radio fad. However, he arrives with a act utterly unsuitable to radio -- he's a juggler. From this very simple premise, Keaton manages to wring out twenty minutes of genuinely entertaining comedy, following Elmer's stumbling, fumbling attempts to make good and impress the ingenue he meets along the way. This is a long way from "Cops," but at a time when the two-reeler market was collapsing, it stands out as one of the better pure comedy shorts of the period.

 

[ChiTownScion]

There is nothing -- bar nothing -- worse in the working world than having a boss who learned everything she knows about business from attending "management seminars."

Worse than a boss whose answer to every inquiry about the status quo is, "Well, this is the way we've always done it?" The person who grasps at the most faddish "in" concepts and the hidebound traditionalist: we've all known those of each extreme, and they can make a fine matching set of bookends for a set of encyclopedias of closed mindedness. Not sure which is the worst of the two evils... but I'd like to think that the best boss (and best worker, for that matter) is the one who can count upon having been tried and tested through years of experience, but is still open to a good idea no matter from whence it may originate.

The Benedictine orders share a custom that goes back many centuries. When engaged in communal discussions, the youngest novice is always asked for their opinion. The reasoning is that the Almighty can proffer wisdom even through the greenhorn. That said, it's always a pain taking orders from someone who is less seasoned than you are and is hell- bent on ignoring your advice, instead steering a course straight into a rock bound coast. And God help you if you ever say, "Told ya so!" after the fact.

 

[KY Gentleman]

I watched a film called The Ritual yesterday.
It was a British movie that seemed to be a cross between a horror flick starring a giant moose with tusk-like arms protruding from his face and a tale about facing your fears or they’ll continue to haunt you wherever you go... I think.
The story opens with two guys walking into a liquor store robbery which culminated in one friend being brutally killed while the other hid and did nothing.
Fast forward one year and the friend who survived is hiking in Sweden with the group of mutual pals that had been together the night of the robbery, but had not been present in the liquor store with the two gents when the attack occurred.
One of the hiking friends twists his ankle and this causes a detour into the forest where said monster-moose lurks.
Throughout the ordeal of trying to escape the forest we are treated to various flashbacks to the tragic night our friend died and we did nothing to intervene.
The movie concludes with our troubled character escaping the woods with the moose in hot pursuit, but we soon learn the monster cannot leave the tree line and our sole survivor buddy turns and screams in triumph and the credits begin to roll.
If anyone has seen this movie and can explain its meaning to me I would enjoy your interpretation of the story!

 

[Worf]

Worse than a boss whose answer to every inquiry about the status quo is, "Well, this is the way we've always done it?" The person who grasps at the most faddish "in" concepts and the hidebound traditionalist: we've all known those of each extreme, and they can make a fine matching set of bookends for a set of encyclopedias of closed mindedness. Not sure which is the worst of the two evils... but I'd like to think that the best boss (and best worker, for that matter) is the one who can count upon having been tried and tested through years of experience, but is still open to a good idea no matter from whence it may originate.

The Benedictine orders share a custom that goes back many centuries. When engaged in communal discussions, the youngest novice is always asked for their opinion. The reasoning is that the Almighty can proffer wisdom even through the greenhorn. That said, it's always a pain taking orders from someone who is less seasoned than you are and is hell- bent on ignoring your advice, instead steering a course straight into a rock bound coast. And God help you if you ever say, "Told ya so!" after the fact.

Ask Kodak and Polaroid. There are mountains, MOUNTAINS of internal documents from mid and lower rung execs and tech people telling them that digital photography was coming... but like poster boys for "Who Ate My Cheese?" they ignored all of it. As Robb Stark said:

"By the time they realized what was happening... it'd already happened."

Sad truly sad.

Worf

 

[Fading Fast]

Ask Kodak and Polaroid. There are mountains, MOUNTAINS of internal documents from mid and lower rung execs and tech people telling them that digital photography was coming... but like poster boys for "Who Ate My Cheese?" they ignored all of it. As Robb Stark said:

"By the time they realized what was happening... it'd already happened."

Sad truly sad.

Worf

If not for a late-but-successful pivot, IBM would have joined that infamous list - it was heading down that path.

 

[Worf]

I watched a film called The Ritual yesterday.
It was a British movie that seemed to be a cross between a horror flick starring a giant moose with tusk-like arms protruding from his face and a tale about facing your fears or they’ll continue to haunt you wherever you go... I think.
The story opens with two guys walking into a liquor store robbery which culminated in one friend being brutally killed while the other hid and did nothing.
Fast forward one year and the friend who survived is hiking in Sweden with the group of mutual pals that had been together the night of the robbery, but had not been present in the liquor store with the two gents when the attack occurred.
One of the hiking friends twists his ankle and this causes a detour into the forest where said monster-moose lurks.
Throughout the ordeal of trying to escape the forest we are treated to various flashbacks to the tragic night our friend died and we did nothing to intervene.
The movie concludes with our troubled character escaping the woods with the moose in hot pursuit, but we soon learn the monster cannot leave the tree line and our sole survivor buddy turns and screams in triumph and the credits begin to roll.
If anyone has seen this movie and can explain its meaning to me I would enjoy your interpretation of the story!

Welp, I saw it. It was "alright" for a Netflix offering. Your run-down is pretty spot on though a little "spoilery" if you ask me. It's all about the protagonist learning to face and FIGHT his fears. The monster feeds off of fear and worship, that's why he kept pushing his head down. They spared him because he was frightened man who would likely grovel for eternity. None of the party could leave the woods, well at least he couldn't, till he conquered his fear... then the woods edge, which always seemed out of reach, suddenly appeared right in front of him. That's my theory at least.

Worf

 

[KY Gentleman]

Welp, I saw it. It was "alright" for a Netflix offering. Your run-down is pretty spot on though a little "spoilery" if you ask me.
Worf

Thanks for your view on the film, I should have posted a spoiler alert.
I did enjoy the movie and I missed some of the nuances like the forcing our characters to kneel and bow. That’s a great observation.
All in all I thought it was entertaining as well.

Thanks again!

 

[Worf]

"Paterno" - An HBO offering detailing the last week of Jo Pa's long and illustrious career. The week begins with his 410th (?) victory and ends with his firing for his role in the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal. A decent film but 2 hours wasn't/isn't enough to do the subject matter justice. Not a flattering portrait of the coach or his family. Like a cash cow the University was loathe to smear the football program though they did try to get him to retire once before the end. If the film is to be believed, a victim told Paterno to his face about Sandusky back in '73 but I suggest you check that. Not academia's most shining moment or college athletics' either. Pacino gives a good performance of a befuddled old coach who's only interest is beating Nebraska next Saturday. Would I recommend it? Only if you're interested in the scandal or have nothing better to do.

Worf

 

[KY Gentleman]

I was inspired to watch The Petrified Forest again tonight after reading some discussions about this film on this very thread about a week ago.
I won’t give a review as the film has been the subject of a lot of comments already and most Loungers are no doubt familiar with it.
I did feel that this film must have had a huge influence on the ‘70’s movie “When You Coming Back, Red Ryder?” starring Marjo Gortner.
It has a similar plot and Marjo played a hardened criminal who terrorized patrons in a diner, though in a much more over the top manner.
Thanks for reminding me of this outstanding film and causing me to dig out my copy of it tonight.

 

[2jakes]

UNIVERSAL PICTURES 1931

As many times as I have seen it and it was made in the US,
and aware that Clive & Karloff came from UK.
I never realized how much florid or British was the language
used in '30s films.

And thanks to Mel Brooks...I expected any minute, to see
Boyle,Wilder, Feldman & the great Madeline Kahn show up!

 

[Fading Fast]

UNIVERSAL PICTURES 1931
View attachment 114204
As many times as I have seen it and it was made in the US,
and aware that Clive & Karloff came from UK.
I never realized how much florid or British was the language
used in '30s films.

And thanks to Mel Brooks...I expected any minute, to see
Boyle,Wilder, Feldman & the great Madeline Kahn show up!

Just tangential to your point, but dollar for dollar (which means the Brits accomplished what they did with [I'm guessing] $1 for every ten Hollywood dollars), British movies / British production companies, overall, did so much more with less and produced a better product - more interesting and story-driven movies - from the '30s - '60s, but most impressively in the '40s and '50s, than did Hollywood.

 

[2jakes]

Just tangential to your point, but dollar for dollar (which means the Brits accomplished what they did with [I'm guessing] $1 for every ten Hollywood dollars), British movies / British production companies, overall, did so much more with less and produced a better product - more interesting and story-driven movies - from the '30s - '60s, but most impressively in the '40s and '50s, than did Hollywood.

Things I gotta know before I kick the bucket:


Why do most movies depicting Roman soldiers...the actors have British accents?

 

[Fading Fast]

Things I gotta know before I kick the bucket:


Why do most movies depicting Roman soldiers...the actors have British accents?

Because Rome conquered and ruled Britain at one point and picked up the accent. Just kidding, I have no idea.

 

[Doctor Strange]

Because it's the empire we sort of remember, and that's how we expect scary imperial types to speak.