What Was The Last Movie You Watched?

[MisterCairo]

Jurassic World 2 I'll have to see again at some point; when I saw it in the cinema they switched off the air con halfway through and I fell asleep in the heat and missed most of the plot.

Some people end up on an island with dinosaurs on it, and they then try to escape from the dinosaurs, having heard previously that people on the dinosaur island had had to escape from the dinosaurs. Some of them manage to do so.

the Missus and I, and her brother and his wife, binged all the previous Jurassic movies as preparation for the latest offering.

Good thing. You wouldn't want to miss any of the subtle nuance... (pretend you see a smiley face here, I cannot see the buttons to add one)

 

[MisterCairo]

Last night I put Lost In Translation into the laptop. I hadn't seen it in yonks. What a lovely quiet movie it is!

I can watch Murphy doing that Suntori Time commercial over and over and over, along with the photo shoot.

"From the right, and with intensity".

"Ring-a-ding-ding..."

 

[Fading Fast]

...Watched A Ghost Story on Netflix last night. If you don't object to watching something with Casey Affleck in it, it's an interesting piece with some lovely photography and strong visuals (very little dialogue), with something to say about attachment to physical places. Much like Manchester by the Sea, it's a very slow-moving character piece without much complication of narrative. I found it charming, though....

And it has the best ghost costume ever. It leaves a classic (dare I say Fedora Lounge) ghost costume untouched.

 

[Edward]

Last night I put Lost In Translation into the laptop. I hadn't seen it in yonks. What a lovely quiet movie it is!

I can watch Murphy doing that Suntori Time commercial over and over and over, along with the photo shoot.

"From the right, and with intensity".

"Ring-a-ding-ding..."

It's wonderful. I remember rewatching it a couple of years later, after I'd been to China for the first time, (it's set in Japan, I know), and identifying with that same sense of being somehow apart from your surroundings.

And it has the best ghost costume ever. It leaves a classic (dare I say Fedora Lounge) ghost costume untouched.

Apparently the whole thing started with the idea of the costume, the notion of imbuing something that looked cutesy or charming with gravitas. I thought it worked remarkably well in order to create a sense of otherness and distance. Apparently it was a nightmare to work with, despite seeming so simple: firstly, no matter how big, no commercial bedsheet would cover a grown man that way, so he had to be layered, and there was a degree of puppetry necessary to keep the eyes in the right place. I loved the ending. Seems he got a happier ending than the other ghost, whomever she was.

 

[Fading Fast]

...Apparently the whole thing started with the idea of the costume, the notion of imbuing something that looked cutesy or charming with gravitas. I thought it worked remarkably well in order to create a sense of otherness and distance. Apparently it was a nightmare to work with, despite seeming so simple: firstly, no matter how big, no commercial bedsheet would cover a grown man that way, so he had to be layered, and there was a degree of puppetry necessary to keep the eyes in the right place. I loved the ending. Seems he got a happier ending than the other ghost, whomever she was.

I didn't know all the inside-baseball info that you do, but I remember my girlfriend and me talking about how difficult "simple" is to do when we saw the movie. We assumed making that sheet work so incredibly well was quite challenging.

 

[Touchofevil]

The Snowman
I expected better than I got.
An very good cast. The cinematography of Norway was great. The story was where it got weak. According to the director, they ran out of time while filming, hence its cohesiveness.

 

[Julian Shellhammer]

New Mission:Impossible. Slow start, sort of tricky middle section, then non-stop thrills. NB: despite the high-speed last section, some of the dangers and situations made parts of the audience laugh.

 

[Fading Fast]

...Since CGI was invented I have lost interest in many action films, probably all in fact. ...

I'd even use a pre-CGI date. As a caveat, it is not as if movie action (most of the time) was ever realistic. Anyone who's ever been in a true fist fight know how unrealistic all the punching in the face is in movies (even back in the '30s) - the ramifications are much more dramatic in real life than is shown in most movies. The same with kicking (especially a body on the ground) and gunfights were always exaggerate in many ways.

That said, and I have no particular date or movie, but the late '60s and, definitely, by the '70s, seemed to be where it all started to get amped up and it's just become more and more unbelievable since.

If you compare any of the first three Bond films, to the last three, the difference in incredible. The action in the first films was, of course, exaggerated, but IMO, you could kid yourself into believing it. Now, it's so beyond believable that to watch the movies today, you have to have a separate category in your mind for "movie action."

It just doesn't work for me. I can stretch my imagination enough for the movie up until the mid-'60s, but after that, most action adventure is too far fetch for me to really enjoy it. Don't get me wrong, I'll watch some of it (but less and less each year), but the extremeness of it leaves me feeling detached and, quite often, bored.

 

[LizzieMaine]

I think the biggest difference is that in the Era, at least before WWII, usually had its tongue planted firmly in its cheek. Watch any Fairbanks or Flynn adventure picture and you can see him laughing all the way thru the story at how implausible it all is, but what the hell, it's a movie, so have some fun with it. The thing with most postwar action pictures that leaves me cold is the deadly stone-faced seriousness of most of them. We know it's all fake, so why not throw us the wink now and then to acknowledge that.

 

[Fading Fast]

I think the biggest difference is that in the Era, at least before WWII, usually had its tongue planted firmly in its cheek. Watch any Fairbanks or Flynn adventure picture and you can see him laughing all the way thru the story at how implausible it all is, but what the hell, it's a movie, so have some fun with it. The thing with most postwar action pictures that leaves me cold is the deadly stone-faced seriousness of most of them. We know it's all fake, so why not throw us the wink now and then to acknowledge that.

For me, it's that nod and a wink from Errol Flynn in his swashbucklers that make them work - and he has one of the best nod and a wink in the history of film.

 

[belfastboy]

And it has the best ghost costume ever. It leaves a classic (dare I say Fedora Lounge) ghost costume untouched.

I almost turned this movie off after about 10 minutes. But my wife and friend convinced me to hang in for a bit longer. Good thing for me as I LOVE this movie. I was touched and at points got all verklempt.......about a guy in a bed sheet for god's sake!!!

 

[belfastboy]

A few weeks back it was Steve McQueen week on TCM and I PVR's them all. Slowly working my way through his body of work. Never was a huge fan but I have to admit in the right role he was very good. He certainly had a certain screen charisma.

 

[rocketeer]

I'd even use a pre-CGI date. As a caveat, it is not as if movie action (most of the time) was ever realistic. Anyone who's ever been in a true fist fight know how unrealistic all the punching in the face is in movies (even back in the '30s) - the ramifications are much more dramatic in real life than is shown in most movies. The same with kicking (especially a body on the ground) and gunfights were always exaggerate in many ways.

That said, and I have no particular date or movie, but the late '60s and, definitely, by the '70s, seemed to be where it all started to get amped up and it's just become more and more unbelievable since.

If you compare any of the first three Bond films, to the last three, the difference in incredible. The action in the first films was, of course, exaggerated, but IMO, you could kid yourself into believing it. Now, it's so beyond believable that to watch the movies today, you have to have a separate category in your mind for "movie action."

It just doesn't work for me. I can stretch my imagination enough for the movie up until the mid-'60s, but after that, most action adventure is too far fetch for me to really enjoy it. Don't get me wrong, I'll watch some of it (but less and less each year), but the extremeness of it leaves me feeling detached and, quite often, bored.

Western action films have a good showing of bar room brawls where no one breaks their bones falling from hights and the hand eye coordination using a revolver is incredible, especially Franco Nero's Django, killing multi enemies with his broken hands.
I try too look at it all as entertainment which after all, that is what it is. But somehow CGI does not work for me no matter how realistic you can always spot a little flaw, much like gaffe in a 'real' film/movie. I still think the stop motion King Kong is one of the greatest of this genre, way over the CGI versions, same with good old Godzilla Man in suit is always better than CGI though I don't know why in this film, makes him more lovable as Godzilla stamps all over a cardboard Tokyo.
Ah Errol Flynn, yes Hollywood's version of English history will probably never be bettered with The Adventures of Robin Hood. In that one I think the sword fighting shadows are the highlight for me, Garry Oldman in Dracula took a queue from that in his depiction of the shadowless vampire, probably the one CGI feature I really enjoyed.
As for Jurassic Park only the first one was really good. Toy Story! A non starter for me.

 

[Fading Fast]

A few weeks back it was Steve McQueen week on TCM and I PVR's them all. Slowly working my way through his body of work. Never was a huge fan but I have to admit in the right role he was very good. He certainly had a certain screen charisma.

For many, myself included, who "discovered" him later, he's an acquired taste. I wasn't impressed when I first started watching his films, but over time, I've come to understand the "king of cool" thing.

It's not a Gable "always on top" cool, or an Elvis "no explanation needed" cool; McQueen's cool is a "I get beat up, I lose sometimes, I'm a bit messed up looking, but I'm still standing, I'm still fighting for what I believe and, heck, I, sometimes, can even get the girl" cool. Plus, well, "Bullitt."

 

[AmateisGal]

Set It Up on Netflix, a dorky romantic comedy about two personal assistants who set their awful bosses up on a date so they can actually have personal lives again. It was fine, but not something I'd watch again.

And of course, Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House which was on TCM for "Myrna Loy Day" as part of their Summer Under the Stars programming. I've seen that movie dozens of times and own the DVD, but it never gets old!

 

[Zombie_61]

For many, myself included, who "discovered" him later, he's an acquired taste. I wasn't impressed when I first started watching his films, but over time, I've come to understand the "king of cool" thing.

It's not a Gable "always on top" cool, or an Elvis "no explanation needed" cool; McQueen's cool is a "I get beat up, I lose sometimes, I'm a bit messed up looking, but I'm still standing, I'm still fighting for what I believe and, heck, I, sometimes, can even get the girl" cool. Plus, well, "Bullitt."

One of my favorite McQueen performances is in The Hunter (1980), a semi-fictionalized account of real-life professional bounty hunter Ralph "Papa" Thorson and McQueen's last movie. During filming McQueen had not yet been diagnosed with the cancer that would cause his death, but reported accounts from cast and crew members verify McQueen was not in peak physical condition. I think McQueen used this to his advantage in this performance, as there are at least a few quiet little "character moments" in the movie that suggest Papa Thorson (or at least the version of him depicted in the movie) is no longer at the top of his game. Admittedly, not a great movie overall and plays more like a "television movie of the week", but worth seeing at least once.

 

[AmateisGal]

Goodbye, Christopher Robin

A nice movie. Not anything earth shattering, but I do love how they captured Milne's creative experience in writing Winnie the Pooh.

 

[Doctor Damage]

Watched "Norman" last night. Richard Gere newest pic. Not usually a fan of his but his is a very good movie and Gere is brilliant. Just may be his finest performance, a master class in acting

I watched this recently and I agree it's a very good film. Even a couple months later, large portions of the film are vivid in my memory.

 

[Fading Fast]

"Dreamboat" from 1952 staring Clifton Webb, Ginger Rogers and (super cute) Anne Francis

I did not expect much from this small movie with not-big or no-longer-big name stars (and a small budget to match), but came away modestly amused and glad I watched it.

Webb plays a middle-aged professor at a small, conservative New England college whose past life as a romantic lead of silent films is embarrassingly revealed when his old movies start showing up on TV. While it seems extreme even for the '50s, this "low-brow" exposure threatens his "erudite" job, so he - with his very uptight college-aged daughter (Francis) - go to NYC to stop the broadcasts.

When there, he discovers that his former silent-era movie partner - Ginger Rogers - is behind the movies being broadcast. With that set up, the rest of the movie is Webb, Rogers and the TV executive (well played by character actor Fred Clark) who's profiting from the movies' TV renaissance fighting over copyright, libel and any other thing these three can think of to sue or fight about. Meanwhile, Webb's daughter - intentionally being wooed by a young studio employee to win favor with her father - is shaken out of her buttoned-down ways resulting in a somewhat-fun reverse-lifestyle arc from her father.

That's about it and you'll have to watch to see how it all turns out (it's not how I expected). With pros like Webb and Clark, it's a step ahead of most modest movies; however and disappointingly, Rogers - an actress I love - shows very little of her talent and sparkle in this one. That said, go in with low expectations and it's a fun hour and a half.

 

[Zombie_61]

As part of TCM's Lionel Atwill marathon last night...

Mark of the Vampire (1935). Sir Karell Borotyn (Holmes Herbert) is murdered and his body drained of blood, so naturally the superstitious villagers blame the "town vampires" Count Mora (Bela Lugosi) and his daughter Luna (Carroll Borland). When Sir Borotyn's daughter Irena (Elizabeth Allan) is murdered in the same way a year later, Police Inspector Neumann (Lionel Atwill) calls in Professor Zelin (Lionel Barrymore) to help solve both cases. Directed by Tod Browning, Mark of the Vampire is allegedly a loose remake of London After Midnight (1927), a "lost" movie that starred Lon Chaney Sr. and was also directed by Browning. As such, Mark of the Vampire plays out much like a filmed "horror whodunit" stage production, complete with melodramatic twists and turns and a "surprise" ending.

The Gorilla (1939). Wealthy Walter Stevens (Lionel Atwill) is threatened by a killer known as "the Gorilla", and hires detectives (the Ritz Brothers) to protect him. Further complicating matters, a real gorilla arrives at the Stevens mansion at the same time as the detectives, and chaos ensues. Rounding out the cast are Bela Lugosi as Peters, the butler, who was clearly cast for his imposing presence; Patsy Kelly as Kitty, the maid, who provides far better comic relief than the Ritz Brothers and is arguably the best thing about the movie; Anita Louise and Edward Norris as Norma Denby and Jack Marsden, respectively, who are apparently included for no other reason than to have two reasonably good-looking people in the movie. The Ritz Brothers are an acquired taste, and I can't say I'm a fan, so their inclusion diminished any pleasure I might have received from this movie. As such, I can neither recommend it nor dissuade anyone from watching it; it's just one of those movies.