Is this the Jennifer Kent movie? If so, what's did you see it?
Film The Redcafe Movie review thread
- Thread starter golden_blunder
- Start date
Melbourne Film Festival
Annihilation Great looking sci-fi with a good cast. Shame the plot is utter gibberish. It literally makes no sense at all. You don't need to suspend disbelief but rater take it out into the woods and execute it. Avoid. 2/10 for the cinematography
Here’s mine, which like you changed daily:
Gladiator
American Psycho
Wolf of Wall St
Matrix
Dark Knight
Pursuit of Happiness
Memento
Shaun of the Dead
City of God
Inglorious Bastards
The Souvenir Almost unwatchably dull and pretentious. No wonder critics loved it but audiences generally hated it. I like good arthouse films but this wasn't good in any way. Even Tilda Swintin couldn't save it. -500/10
Fast & Furious: Hobbs & Shaw
Went to see this on opening night. Whilst completely over the top, in typical F&F style I quite enjoyed it.
It doesn't really do anything new but Johnson, Statham and Elba put on a good show and Vanessa Kirby looks just as good as she did in M:I Fallout
.
If you like action films and F&F in particular it's a decent little spinoff, probably 20/30 minutes could have been shaved from it without making any difference, and as stated at the top it's well OTT but who cares?!
I give it a solid 7.5/10
Went to see this on opening night. Whilst completely over the top, in typical F&F style I quite enjoyed it.
It doesn't really do anything new but Johnson, Statham and Elba put on a good show and Vanessa Kirby looks just as good as she did in M:I Fallout
.If you like action films and F&F in particular it's a decent little spinoff, probably 20/30 minutes could have been shaved from it without making any difference, and as stated at the top it's well OTT but who cares?!
I give it a solid 7.5/10
I’m seeing this on Saturday and sort of dreading it.
The Day Shall Come - I know Chris Morris is revered in some circles but this film is just so incredibly dumb. Jam packed with dated Dad jokes about terrorism (literally has FBI agents comically struggling with Arab names) and how dumb extremists are (the same ground he trod a little more tolerably in Four Lions). It’s so half assed too, just ugly flat lightning like a second rate BBC cop show and absolutely no effort with any part of the production. Just really awful. The audience I was in fecking loved it though so I may just be a crank.
Byzantium is a good coastal film or The Shipping News.
Mine:
No particular order
The Outlaw Josey Wales
Apocalypse Now
Dark Knight
The Big Lebowski
The Shawshank Redemption
Snatch
Fight Club
Kill Bill
Equilibrium
Dog Soldiers
How did I forget Snatch!
Lake Mungo
Strange things start happening after a girl is found drowned in a lake. A pseudo-documentary style, this film was fecking amazing. I'd kept skipping past it for years as I watched Lake Placid many years ago and thought it was called Lake Mungo
It's super low budget indie-aussie film but dont let the production value put you off. Very interesting story that keeps amping up the tension just as you start thinking the story can't stretch any further. It's not scary but super creepy and stays with you long after the film has ended. Be sure to watch the mid-credits stuff... very eerie. Glad I finally saw this 8/10
Strange things start happening after a girl is found drowned in a lake. A pseudo-documentary style, this film was fecking amazing. I'd kept skipping past it for years as I watched Lake Placid many years ago and thought it was called Lake Mungo
It's super low budget indie-aussie film but dont let the production value put you off. Very interesting story that keeps amping up the tension just as you start thinking the story can't stretch any further. It's not scary but super creepy and stays with you long after the film has ended. Be sure to watch the mid-credits stuff... very eerie. Glad I finally saw this 8/10I've been recommending that film for centuries!
It's amazing right?I've been recommending that film for centuries!
Yeah, mate. As you wrote:
War Dogs
Jonah Hill is wonderfully creepy as a coked up con man dealing arms to the US, he gets his childhood mate Miles Teller involved and the obvious happens. It was fairly good with some good performances so it was all good. Good? Not overly, it was a bit predictable. Ana De Armas is an unreasonably gorgeous woman, but ever since Knock Knock I now expect her to take a psycho turn pretty much every time she's on screen. She was scary as shit in that.
6/10
Police Story
First time I've watched it since the 90's and it's actually a lot more serious than I remember. It does have it's moments of slapstick and when the action kicks off it's some of the best action committed to screen. Saying that though, it's more of a thriller/police drama than a kung fu film or comedy. It's fantastic though. How is Jackie Chan still in one piece?
9/10
Sicario 2
I didn't like the first Sicario, it seemed like it was 2 hours of Emily Blunt staring into the distance. In fact that's all I remember of it, just close up after close up of her pale face staring off into the distance. The sequel removes her and her stare, actually I can't even remember if she survived the first film. The sequel is much, much better. Men with no morals doing bad things for what they think are the right reasons and then things get twisted. Do they find their humanity? Who knows. Benicio Del Torro is a good actor when he's not in Star Wars.
8/10
Jonah Hill is wonderfully creepy as a coked up con man dealing arms to the US, he gets his childhood mate Miles Teller involved and the obvious happens. It was fairly good with some good performances so it was all good. Good? Not overly, it was a bit predictable. Ana De Armas is an unreasonably gorgeous woman, but ever since Knock Knock I now expect her to take a psycho turn pretty much every time she's on screen. She was scary as shit in that.
6/10
Police Story
First time I've watched it since the 90's and it's actually a lot more serious than I remember. It does have it's moments of slapstick and when the action kicks off it's some of the best action committed to screen. Saying that though, it's more of a thriller/police drama than a kung fu film or comedy. It's fantastic though. How is Jackie Chan still in one piece?
9/10
Sicario 2
I didn't like the first Sicario, it seemed like it was 2 hours of Emily Blunt staring into the distance. In fact that's all I remember of it, just close up after close up of her pale face staring off into the distance. The sequel removes her and her stare, actually I can't even remember if she survived the first film. The sequel is much, much better. Men with no morals doing bad things for what they think are the right reasons and then things get twisted. Do they find their humanity? Who knows. Benicio Del Torro is a good actor when he's not in Star Wars.
8/10
Watched this on the plane the other day and thought it was not too bad, pretty entertaining. Very predictable but still not bad. Also, Ana de Armas oh my God.
Watch Knock Knock with her and Keanu Reeves if you get the chance. That beautiful face will never be the same.
Are you trying to ruin Ana de Armas for me you bastard?
Ok ok might check it out.
Any other Ana de Armas recos?
Any other Ana de Armas recos?
I've not seen her in much. Blade Runner 2049 was cack. She was in another film with Keanu Reeves, but I can't remember what it was called or if it was good. I saw it on a list on Amazon Prime and then was surprised that I'd already watched it.
Depends if you think seeing her naked is ruining her for you.
I just finished watching the Bergman box set from Criterion. Great films, great transfers, great art book. A brilliant set and really good value.
The Seventh Seal, Wild Strawberries, The Magician, The Virgin Spring, Through a Glass, Winter Light, Persona (still don't love it but by god is it spectacular), Cries and Whispers, Scenes from a Marriage, Autumn Sonata, Fanny and Alexander. I could drone on about each of these for yonks. In terms of consistency and longevity that seems pretty unmatched. Hitchcock was on the way. Fellini not far behind. Only the Japanese masters can really compare. Chisel Bergman's head onto the rock face of cinema. Utterly invigorating stuff.
The only film that I didn't like was All These Women. It's beautifully designed but the comedy is incredibly lame.
Also Liv Ullmann brings the pain across a huge chunk of Bergman's work. Being a director's Muse can brings its limitations but rewatching these films, and back to back, it becomes clear that she manages to transcend such confinements. Her superlative skill and range become increasingly apparent as the years go by. Autumn Sonata is one of the rawest things you'll see on film, and from the ego-stripping Scenes from a Marriage up to Saraband, when she plays an older woman humbled by time and memory with such deftness, she's peerless. You can keep your Deneuves and your Streeps.
The only negative was the decision to group the films in a weird "thematic order", rather than a simple chronological one. I don't need an overpriced, exclusionary dvd company (for wankers) telling me how to watch a bunch of films, or how a particular group of disparate films all contain clowns, you clowns. Having to go back and forth switching out discs is a minor inconvenience but it really is the thought process of a patronising prick.
The Seventh Seal, Wild Strawberries, The Magician, The Virgin Spring, Through a Glass, Winter Light, Persona (still don't love it but by god is it spectacular), Cries and Whispers, Scenes from a Marriage, Autumn Sonata, Fanny and Alexander. I could drone on about each of these for yonks. In terms of consistency and longevity that seems pretty unmatched. Hitchcock was on the way. Fellini not far behind. Only the Japanese masters can really compare. Chisel Bergman's head onto the rock face of cinema. Utterly invigorating stuff.
The only film that I didn't like was All These Women. It's beautifully designed but the comedy is incredibly lame.
Also Liv Ullmann brings the pain across a huge chunk of Bergman's work. Being a director's Muse can brings its limitations but rewatching these films, and back to back, it becomes clear that she manages to transcend such confinements. Her superlative skill and range become increasingly apparent as the years go by. Autumn Sonata is one of the rawest things you'll see on film, and from the ego-stripping Scenes from a Marriage up to Saraband, when she plays an older woman humbled by time and memory with such deftness, she's peerless. You can keep your Deneuves and your Streeps.
The only negative was the decision to group the films in a weird "thematic order", rather than a simple chronological one. I don't need an overpriced, exclusionary dvd company (for wankers) telling me how to watch a bunch of films, or how a particular group of disparate films all contain clowns, you clowns. Having to go back and forth switching out discs is a minor inconvenience but it really is the thought process of a patronising prick.
That has the funnies line from Keanu... "You fecked me!"
The Houses October Built
Five friends are stalked by a group of mysterious and disturbed individuals while on a road trip looking for the ultimate haunted house attraction. I remember enjoying this a few years back but not so much this time round. A lot of false scares and scenes of nothing happening. Forgettable characters. The final act was ok but I was kinda checked out by then 4.5/10
The Poughkeepsie Tapes
In an abandoned house in Poughkeepsie, New York murder investigators uncover hundreds of tapes showing decades of a serial killer's work. Another one that I enjoyed more on first watch. Still quite harrowing and makes you think about how easily an intruder can kidnap someone if they so wish. Some really memorable scenes and the very end interview still gives me chills. Wish it had another layer to the story though 6/10
Apocalypse Now Redux
8.5/10
There's too much to discuss about Apocalypse Now & our own interpretations of the film.
Here's an interesting perspective from its creator:
Francis Ford Coppola: 'Apocalypse Now is not an anti-war film' ~
https://www.theguardian.com/film/20...oppola-apocalypse-now-is-not-an-anti-war-film
8.5/10
There's too much to discuss about Apocalypse Now & our own interpretations of the film.
Here's an interesting perspective from its creator:
Francis Ford Coppola: 'Apocalypse Now is not an anti-war film' ~
https://www.theguardian.com/film/20...oppola-apocalypse-now-is-not-an-anti-war-film
It's been so many years since I trawled through his filmography during my cinematic gestation period, not really sure where I stand on him anymore. There's been a Bergman oversaturation in Sweden recently due to the centenary last year. I'm not sure how many different documentaries on him as a person have been released in the last few years, bet more people have seen documentaries about him than his actual films, which is a shame because the films are way more interesting than the man.I just finished watching the Bergman box set from Criterion. Great films, great transfers, great art book. A brilliant set and really good value.
The Seventh Seal, Wild Strawberries, The Magician, The Virgin Spring, Through a Glass, Winter Light, Persona (still don't love it but by god is it spectacular), Cries and Whispers, Scenes from a Marriage, Autumn Sonata, Fanny and Alexander. I could drone on about each of these for yonks. In terms of consistency and longevity that seems pretty unmatched. Hitchcock was on the way. Fellini not far behind. Only the Japanese masters can really compare. Chisel Bergman's head onto the rock face of cinema. Utterly invigorating stuff.
The only film that I didn't like was All These Women. It's beautifully designed but the comedy is incredibly lame.
Also Liv Ullmann brings the pain across a huge chunk of Bergman's work. Being a director's Muse can brings its limitations but rewatching these films, and back to back, it becomes clear that she manages to transcend such confinements. Her superlative skill and range become increasingly apparent as the years go by. Autumn Sonata is one of the rawest things you'll see on film, and from the ego-stripping Scenes from a Marriage up to Saraband, when she plays an older woman humbled by time and memory with such deftness, she's peerless. You can keep your Deneuves and your Streeps.
The only negative was the decision to group the films in a weird "thematic order", rather than a simple chronological one. I don't need an overpriced, exclusionary dvd company (for wankers) telling me how to watch a bunch of films, or how a particular group of disparate films all contain clowns, you clowns. Having to go back and forth switching out discs is a minor inconvenience but it really is the thought process of a patronising prick.
Massive fan of this film. Hoping to catch it on the big screen in the next few weeks.
The Vanishing (1993)
Even Jeff Bridges couldn't save this remake.
5/10
Even Jeff Bridges couldn't save this remake.
5/10
Have you seen Bone Tomahawk? If not, you should add it aswell. It's very good and one of the creepiest westerns you'll ever see.
I thought I might have been fed up by the end but if anything my admiration and excitement for the films has grown. I have the Liv and Ingmar documentary to watch but I'm in no hurry to see the others. I'll try and track down Ullmann's directorial work too.
Ullman is a stunning actress, though stay away from her Miss Julie adaptation.
My fav Bergman bae's:
My fav Bergman bae's:
Redux is so much worse than the original release.
It will.be interestung to see what the latest version is like.
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The Souvenir - like a Ken Loach film, except not about the plight of the working class, but the plight of the rich. Which is boredom. It's hard not to see the talent behind this but it's harder to care about such an idle, passive protagonist, which when you consider the film is autobiographical, is kind of a self-own on Joanna Hogg's part.
In contrast...
Portrait of a Lady on Fire - is, similarly, a film about a female artist but is far more lively and entertaining that the above. Begins with an absolutely brilliant conundrum before becoming a truly great love story. It's great. Lots of heavily eyebrowed French lesbian love, so even Grinner could get into it.
In contrast...
Portrait of a Lady on Fire - is, similarly, a film about a female artist but is far more lively and entertaining that the above. Begins with an absolutely brilliant conundrum before becoming a truly great love story. It's great. Lots of heavily eyebrowed French lesbian love, so even Grinner could get into it.
Is it as good as Desert Hearts?
Helen Shaver is a great name.
True Grit
The remake with Jeff Bridges and Hailee Steinfeld. The spelling of her name annoys me. It's a very good film and the two leads are excellent. Steinfeld getting warmed up to star alongside Bumblebee and Jeff Bridges being awesome like he usually is. I did not care for the bit with the snakes or the bit with the horse though. I get that it was some sort of allegory for killing the last of her childish innocence or some shit that I'm too thick to understand, but I don't like snakes or watching animals suffer. I'm fine with watching people suffer though, if he'd gotten a piggy back off Matt Damon instead I'd have been fine with it.
8/10
The remake with Jeff Bridges and Hailee Steinfeld. The spelling of her name annoys me. It's a very good film and the two leads are excellent. Steinfeld getting warmed up to star alongside Bumblebee and Jeff Bridges being awesome like he usually is. I did not care for the bit with the snakes or the bit with the horse though. I get that it was some sort of allegory for killing the last of her childish innocence or some shit that I'm too thick to understand, but I don't like snakes or watching animals suffer. I'm fine with watching people suffer though, if he'd gotten a piggy back off Matt Damon instead I'd have been fine with it.
8/10
Sonatine is lyrical, violent and nihilistic; it’s nonchalant and focused at the same time. Above all: it’s trademark Kitano. The lingering shots of Okinawa’s seaside, the otherworldly brilliant score by Hisaishi, the outbursts of violence, the offbeat humor: it’s all there.
10/10
On another note: are there any caftards active on Letterboxd? If so, drop your nickname and I’ll give you a follow. It’s quite a useful site to log (and if you want review) every film you’ve watched.
Here’s my account: https://boxd.it/lKmP
10/10
On another note: are there any caftards active on Letterboxd? If so, drop your nickname and I’ll give you a follow. It’s quite a useful site to log (and if you want review) every film you’ve watched.
Here’s my account: https://boxd.it/lKmP
Midsommar - I feel like this is an accurate insight into the Swedish mindset and has allowed me to fully appreciate @R.N7 and his Korine-esque depravity. Truly a country of craven ghouls. The film is great though, a continuation of the dread laden vibe in Hereditary, but Swedish, and weird.
I thought Sonatine was boring tbh.
About to watch good boys. Hopefully a lot better than the last pile of wank I watched, Hobbs and Shaw.