what was the last movie you watched?

[Warhawk]

Man, Punch Drunk Love does not belong on any list with Battlefield Earth. The former is a unique Paul Thomas Anderson masterpiece crackling with life and featuring Adam Sandler's single best performance, while the latter is a bad joke sponsored by the Church of Scientology.

Also, while I don't think all that highly of Idiocracy as a film, it has certainly proven to be a timely statement, given the political and cultural momentum of America across these last several years.

As far as Batman goes, I've come to admire Tim Burton's uber-gothic vision as the years have passed and superhero movies have gotten less distinct and less interesting, visually speaking. And Michael Keaton's performance as Batman really captures the billionaire eccentricity at the heart of the character.

Val Kilmer was too aloof. George Clooney was too Playboy. Christian Bale was too wooden. But Michael Keaton was so weird and off-beat and kind of menacing, at times. I buy his performance as the adult evolution of a rich kid who watched as his parents were murdered in an unspeakably violent way.

Punch Drunk Love was the singular worst Adam Sandler movie I've ever seen. It was just awful. All 4 of us just wanted to walk out of the theater, and that is rare for me. It wasn't funny and didn't resonate with any of us at all.

And while I agree with the "statement" part of Idiocracy, I couldn't watch the whole thing. Shut it off over halfway through. It was so bad as a movie I didn't really care how good the message was. I'd heard friends praise it and wanted to like it but maybe you have to be drunk to watch it?

I agree about Michael Keaton but the Christian Bale "version" of Batman is my favorite (and the movies are better as well). Many of the earlier ones have characters that are soo cartoon-y that I can't take them seriously in a film.

 

[Hoovtrain]

If we are talking awful movies, I got you all beat. Dreamcatcher. Walked out of it within the 1st hour. Absolutely horrendous. So scattered, uninteresting and just plain dumb

 

[VF21]

MOD NOTE; This thread is being temporarily suspended until the end of the movie draft.

 

[Warhawk]

Now that the drafting is over, I've re-opened this one.

Just watched Wrong Missy last night and while cute, it had a bit too much language for my wife's comfort level.

Watched the Bourne trilogy and the follow-up Jason Bourne in the last week or two. I had seen some of them in bits and pieces but never the whole series. Overall, very well done.

I watched several Netflix shows, including Extraction, The Old Guard, and The Irishman. All were decent in their way. The Irishman was very well acted, but way too long for the story it was telling.

 

[Warhawk]

Oh yeah, and I caught John Wick on TV and subsequently bought 1 and 2 on Blu-Ray on sale so I could watch them without commercials and edits. Haven't had a chance to yet.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

Teej and I watched all the Moore Bond movies the last two weekends, watched Casino Royale last night and might hit QoS tonight (I have only seen CR so will be new for me too). We also binged the Mission Impossible movies, enjoyed those. And maybe one other series I can't recall.

We're just picking a Bond and then watching all his films. But have kind of decided to hit Connery last since the first two films might be a little dry for him.

I have always had Barbara Bach at my favorite Bond girl and The Spy Who Loved me as one of my favorite Bonds, certainly the best Moore but Carole Bouquet from For Your Eyes Only may have won me over.

Also I totally forgot how good Casino Royale was and I honestly had totally forgotten the plot so I really enjoyed that one.

I also watched the Go-Gos doc on Showtime. It was really good, and really retained focus (perhaps too well, as I would have loved a little more info on their bands pre-Go-Gos and also Jane Weidlin's solo career which I only vaguely remember (this is stupid but I had a baby sitter who really, really hated Jane for some reason, it was personal and involved someone they both knew; so I had written her off as a kid).

 

[kb02]

Just watched the King of Staten Island this weekend. Very good. Subtle, but funny.

 

[Hoovtrain]

Just watched the King of Staten Island this weekend. Very good. Subtle, but funny.

I really enjoyed it as well

 

[Hoovtrain]

The Outpost was a pleasant surprise.

 

[VF21]

I just finished watching Blazing Saddles. I had to order it on DVD. My VHS copy just didn't want to cooperate any longer.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

After watching Quantum of Solace I am super pumped for the last two Craig films. Don't know what took me so long.

 

[Warhawk]

After watching Quantum of Solace I am super pumped for the last two Craig films. Don't know what took me so long.

Don't forget who has that in the movie draft when you vote.....

 

[dude12]

Train to Busan

I had watched it several months ago but I showed it to the wife who got totally into it. She isn’t really into zombie flicks but this Korean film is really well made and the little girl in this is one heck of an actres.

 

[Warhawk]

Watched Fargo the other night. I know I had seen at least part of it at some point but finally watched the whole thing. Not quite as good as I was expecting overall but fun performances by Frances McDormand and Steve Buscemi in particular. Definitely a Coen brother movie.

 

[VF21]

Watched Fargo the other night. I know I had seen at least part of it at some point but finally watched the whole thing. Not quite as good as I was expecting overall but fun performances by Frances McDormand and Steve Buscemi in particular. Definitely a Coen brother movie.

Watch it again. As with most Coen productions, you'll catch things the second time you missed on your initial viewing.

 

[Warhawk]

Watch it again. As with most Coen productions, you'll catch things the second time you missed on your initial viewing.

Maybe at some point. I've got a long list of things to watch - just started The Wings of Eagles with John Wayne. While I have a few in the queue that I have watched before, I'm making more of an effort to catch movies I haven't seen already (especially if they are in the drafting list from the Movie Draft). I know this one wasn't, but I saw it flipping through channels and decided to record it for later viewing anyways.

 

[Warhawk]

Finished watching Parasite last night with my wife. It wasn't quite what I thought it was going to be. A well done movie, but I don't think it was "Academy"-worthy. I would have taken Joker or 1917 over it for best picture, and probably Ford v. Ferrari as well. I haven't watched the others that were nominated yet (apart from The Irishman) so I can't comment on those.

 

[Löwenherz]

Finished watching Parasite last night with my wife. It wasn't quite what I thought it was going to be. A well done movie, but I don't think it was "Academy"-worthy. I would have taken Joker or 1917 over it for best picture, and probably Ford v. Ferrari as well. I haven't watched the others that were nominated yet (apart from The Irishman) so I can't comment on those.

Interesting take. I’m curious what you mean by “Academy”-worthy.

I haven’t seen Joker, but I have watched all the other 2020 Best Picture nominees. Really enjoyed Ford v. Ferrari for its ability to thrill and entertain, and to a lesser extent JoJo Rabbit and ... Hollywood, which I felt were ambitious and creative but uneven in narrative atmosphere, theming, and mood. Found 1917 a bit too gimmicky and distractingly dreamlike to the point of ending up a little monotonously and ironically dull. The Irishman, Little Women, and Marriage Story were supremely well acted, but I honestly can’t say lingered in my mind for much time afterward.

Parasite though, was a shock to the system.

I went in with unusually heightened expectations seeing it only after it had already won Beat Picture, usually a death sentence with me that I put in a great deal of effort to avoid (Green Book, The Shape of Water, Spotlight, Birdman, Million Dollar Baby, and The Artist all suffered through that doomed voyage).

But Bong Joon-ho’s film was so delicately crafted, cleverly focused, visually playful, and honestly genre-bending, it had my wife, who is not a film fan at all, and I both still buzzing a few days later.

Every single frame is either a metaphor, allusion, reference, set-up, or call-back. It is positively dizzying to pick apart each and every one (The juxtaposition of people walking upstairs while someone else walks downstairs in the opposite direction within the same frame; the use of windows to represent both isolation and insulation; the omnipresence of Water as both life essential and destructive force. The metaphor of rock and concrete as both security and prison, on and on and on).

And on top of all that, the film starts off as a rompish comedy, then halfway through seamlessly diverts into a tense drama with undertones of horror.

I totally get if it wasn’t your thing, and I think this was one of the stronger crops of nominees overall, but I think the Academy nailed this one, and the only other time I felt so strongly in that regard this century was with Moonlight.

 

[Warhawk]

Interesting take. I’m curious what you mean by “Academy”-worthy.

I haven’t seen Joker, but I have watched all the other 2020 Best Picture nominees. Really enjoyed Ford v. Ferrari for its ability to thrill and entertain, and to a lesser extent JoJo Rabbit and ... Hollywood, which I felt were ambitious and creative but uneven in narrative atmosphere, theming, and mood. Found 1917 a bit too gimmicky and distractingly dreamlike to the point of ending up a little monotonously and ironically dull. The Irishman, Little Women, and Marriage Story were supremely well acted, but I honestly can’t say lingered in my mind for much time afterward.

Parasite though, was a shock to the system.

I went in with unusually heightened expectations seeing it only after it had already won Beat Picture, usually a death sentence with me that I put in a great deal of effort to avoid (Green Book, The Shape of Water, Spotlight, Birdman, Million Dollar Baby, and The Artist all suffered through that doomed voyage).

But Bong Joon-ho’s film was so delicately crafted, cleverly focused, visually playful, and honestly genre-bending, it had my wife, who is not a film fan at all, and I both still buzzing a few days later.

Every single frame is either a metaphor, allusion, reference, set-up, or call-back. It is positively dizzying to pick apart each and every one (The juxtaposition of people walking upstairs while someone else walks downstairs in the opposite direction within the same frame; the use of windows to represent both isolation and insulation; the omnipresence of Water as both life essential and destructive force. The metaphor of rock and concrete as both security and prison, on and on and on).

And on top of all that, the film starts off as a rompish comedy, then halfway through seamlessly diverts into a tense drama with undertones of horror.

I totally get if it wasn’t your thing, and I think this was one of the stronger crops of nominees overall, but I think the Academy nailed this one, and the only other time I felt so strongly in that regard this century was with Moonlight.

You obviously look at films with a different perspective than I do. And that is probably why I don't make any decisions on some of these things.

Every single frame is either a metaphor, allusion, reference, set-up, or call-back. It is positively dizzying to pick apart each and every one (The juxtaposition of people walking upstairs while someone else walks downstairs in the opposite direction within the same frame; the use of windows to represent both isolation and insulation; the omnipresence of Water as both life essential and destructive force. The metaphor of rock and concrete as both security and prison, on and on and on).

OK, maybe so, I guess? I guess I don't really care? If you just make a whole film out of these elements does it really matter? It sure didn't impact my enjoyment of the film (and to me doesn't parlay anything into being Academy-worthy). The switch from a comedy to "more serious" film is one of the things that turned my wife (and to a certain extent, me) away from thinking it was better. I really liked what was going on early in the movie (had an interesting vibe going on with how they all got to be working for the family, etc.) but the slasher bit at the end was not a note in the film's favor for us. My wife couldn't watch that part at all.

(Edit: and while that part didn't "offend" me, it was so out of character with the rest of the film it was like watching The Sound of Music and seeing some Robocop thrown in there or something - it just didn't "fit" for me.)

Joaquin Phoenix's performance in Joker was one of the best I've ever seen. That film gripped me in a way few do. A stunning look at mental illness and how it manifested itself in his character.

1917 was breathtakingly filmed and told, especially with the continuous "one-shot" throughout and fantastic acting. The film unfolded in a way that similarly had me drawn into the story and the fate of the messengers (and the message)!

Ford v. Ferrari took historical events and made a superbly entertaining character study and very engrossing film out of them. I got a lot more out of it as a film (and as pure entertainment) than Parasite.

Parasite was, for the most, part....cute? A nice little film. Different than most, well filmed, and mostly entertaining (especially before the turn at the end). Just not all that "special" of a film overall (in my opinion) though.

 

[dude12]

Interesting reading both of the POV’s above. Löwenher with his way in-depth breakdown. Im more simplistic on films.

I personally thought Joker should have been the award winner As Warhawk said. Yeah, Joaquin Phoenix was just so good. I watched it in the theater and was on edge, walked out of the theater and was still on edge.

Ive thought 1917 was a serious contender for top film. Ford v Ferrari Was outstanding and Christian Bale, as usual, was top notch.

JoJo Rabbit and Hollywood were really good but below the above. I loved The Irishman but slot in with these 2 movies. Marriage Story slots in below this but the acting was so good.

Parasite? Watched it at home and waited for it to not live up to the hype..... but I thought it delivered. I’d put it in with 1917 and Ford but not above them. For me, Joker was a hell of a story of a character that we all know but now know even better.

 

[Warhawk]

Interesting reading both of the POV’s above. Löwenher with his way in-depth breakdown. Im more simplistic on films.

I personally thought Joker should have been the award winner As Warhawk said. Yeah, Joaquin Phoenix was just so good. I watched it in the theater and was on edge, walked out of the theater and was still on edge.

Ive thought 1917 was a serious contender for top film. Ford v Ferrari Was outstanding and Christian Bale, as usual, was top notch.

JoJo Rabbit and Hollywood were really good but below the above. I loved The Irishman but slot in with these 2 movies. Marriage Story slots in below this but the acting was so good.

Parasite? Watched it at home and waited for it to not live up to the hype..... but I thought it delivered. I’d put it in with 1917 and Ford but not above them. For me, Joker was a hell of a story of a character that we all know but now know even better.

Simplistic - excellent word for my film watching as well (in some ways). Thank you. I liked Parasite. Actually, a lot, especially up until the very end. But I don't think it quite lived up to the others. That's not me trying to knock the film - I just didn't think it was, for me, quite as good a film.

Some people have the background, knowledge, insight, and predisposition (that I think @Padrino and @Löwenherz do, amongst others) in watching films to be able to look deeper into them for additional meaning that for me just isn't there. That is more an indication of my shortcomings than anything else. I tend to see film more as entertainment than art, for the most part. (I think Padrino in particular may have those attributes switched in his film watching.)

I loved Arrival. The Blade Runner movies were great. While a failure of a film overall, I liked the audacity of what they tried to do with Dune (and am REALLY looking forward to the upcoming interpretation of that fantastic book). Movies like Ex Machina are also right in my wheelhouse (to a large extent). But I don't always see what some others find great in some films, though. And that's fine! That is why they make both Zoolander AND the Godfather.

 

[dude12]

Simplistic - excellent word for my film watching as well (in some ways). Thank you. I liked Parasite. Actually, a lot, especially up until the very end. But I don't think it quite lived up to the others. That's not me trying to knock the film - I just didn't think it was, for me, quite as good a film.

Some people have the background, knowledge, insight, and predisposition (that I think @Padrino and @Löwenherz do, amongst others) in watching films to be able to look deeper into them for additional meaning that for me just isn't there. That is more an indication of my shortcomings than anything else. I tend to see film more as entertainment than art, for the most part. (I think Padrino in particular may have those attributes switched in his film watching.)

I loved Arrival. The Blade Runner movies were great. While a failure of a film overall, I liked the audacity of what they tried to do with Dune (and am REALLY looking forward to the upcoming interpretation of that fantastic book). Movies like Ex Machina are also right in my wheelhouse (to a large extent). But I don't always see what some others find great in some films, though. And that's fine! That is why they make both Zoolander AND the Godfather.

Ex-Machina....have seen it many, many times

 

[Warhawk]

Ex-Machina....have seen it many, many times

Amazon has the 4k disk/Blu-Ray/digital HD version combo on sale for $10. Guess what I just ordered.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

We made it through the Craig movies and watched The Living Daylights tonight. I've always thought Dalton played a great Bond and was stuck with an evolving world that didn't lend itself to making good Bond films. Craig was also supposed to be a more "book like Bond", and so it is neat that my kiddo wanted to watch these two actors' takes back to back because I think they complement well.

I'm not sure how long it has been since I watched this one. Close to 20 years, at least. I'll stand by my assessment of Dalton on this one. Had the Cold War not ended when it did, he could have had a 4-5 film run that put him higher on most people's lists. Instead he's kind of a footnote for Gen Xers.

 

[Löwenherz]

You obviously look at films with a different perspective than I do. And that is probably why I don't make any decisions on some of these things.

Every single frame is either a metaphor, allusion, reference, set-up, or call-back. It is positively dizzying to pick apart each and every one (The juxtaposition of people walking upstairs while someone else walks downstairs in the opposite direction within the same frame; the use of windows to represent both isolation and insulation; the omnipresence of Water as both life essential and destructive force. The metaphor of rock and concrete as both security and prison, on and on and on).

OK, maybe so, I guess? I guess I don't really care? If you just make a whole film out of these elements does it really matter? It sure didn't impact my enjoyment of the film (and to me doesn't parlay anything into being Academy-worthy). The switch from a comedy to "more serious" film is one of the things that turned my wife (and to a certain extent, me) away from thinking it was better. I really liked what was going on early in the movie (had an interesting vibe going on with how they all got to be working for the family, etc.) but the slasher bit at the end was not a note in the film's favor for us. My wife couldn't watch that part at all.

(Edit: and while that part didn't "offend" me, it was so out of character with the rest of the film it was like watching The Sound of Music and seeing some Robocop thrown in there or something - it just didn't "fit" for me.)

Joaquin Phoenix's performance in Joker was one of the best I've ever seen. That film gripped me in a way few do. A stunning look at mental illness and how it manifested itself in his character.

1917 was breathtakingly filmed and told, especially with the continuous "one-shot" throughout and fantastic acting. The film unfolded in a way that similarly had me drawn into the story and the fate of the messengers (and the message)!

Ford v. Ferrari took historical events and made a superbly entertaining character study and very engrossing film out of them. I got a lot more out of it as a film (and as pure entertainment) than Parasite.

Parasite was, for the most, part....cute? A nice little film. Different than most, well filmed, and mostly entertaining (especially before the turn at the end). Just not all that "special" of a film overall (in my opinion) though.

“Well if my cathedral to cutting-edge taste holds no interest to your tragically Sacramentan sensibilities, then I shall be forced to grant you a quick exit from the premises ... “



Hey, everything you said makes a lot of sense. Parasite fell apart for you at the genre turn, whereas I thought that’s when it really took off, moving from “cute” to transcendent. If the film failed to sell the turn to you, then I totally get why you would deem it un-Academy-worthy.

And you’ve really sold me on Joker. Bummed it’s taken me so long to hop on board that hype train, what with the buzz of it being a Dark Knight / Taxi Driver fusion. Plus, Phoenix spent a whole year training to play a crazy person with I’m Still Here.

But beyond all that, given how often our paths crossed in the movie draft, I hold your recommendations in high regard.

I do take issue with one comment though: there is nothing “simplistic” about yours or dude12’s approach to or appreciation of films. You both think the Academy should honor the film that was most gripping, impactful, and affecting, (Just as I do) and laid out compelling reasons for Joker, 1917, and Ford v. Ferrari.

Yes, I’m in the “every frame a painting” camp, but I view that more as enrichment than compulsory. I could do the same analysis with movies ranging from Endgame to Roma, but if the movie doesn’t appeal to me at a base level, I typically won’t bother.

I mean, you’re talking to a guy who’s made loving Point Break a part of his identity.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

License to Kill last night. This is the least formula-Bond Bond pic and perhaps one of the best on-screen portrayals of Bond in all of them. It's over the top violent and nasty. The villain is more Scarface meets Noriega than madman bent on world domination or destroying civilization through nuclear holocaust. Being 30 years removed it's hard to compare the personal style of Dalton and Craig - the cars Craig has are sexier and the Tom Ford outfits are grail level menswear so I give Craig the edge in the "cool" factor but I still really like this Bond. It's too bad legal issues kept him from doing the third film he was originally contracted for.

We still have to watch the Connery (and Lazenby) films, and will hopefully watch all four Brosnan films next weekend, though school is starting up tomorrow.

But my current rankings are:
1. Connery
2. Dalton
2. (tie) Craig
4. Moore
5. Brosnan

incomplete: Lazenby

 

[Warhawk]

Not “watched”, but on the “very anxious to watch” list!

 

[Sluggah]

(Green Book, The Shape of Water, Spotlight, Birdman, Million Dollar Baby, and The Artist all suffered through that doomed voyage).

In all fairness, none of those movies should have won best picture in their respective year.

 

[Warhawk]

Amazon has the 4k disk/Blu-Ray/digital HD version combo on sale for $10. Guess what I just ordered.

The bummer is that the digital HD code didn't work (likely because it was past the expiration date to claim it). I've had most work even past the date on the insert, but this one didn't. I emailed the company to see if they can remedy that. Fingers crossed!

 

[LoungeLizard]

TENET

Where do I begin...or end for that matter? This film had my head spinning, but in a good way. I’m going to have to see this a few times to figure out all the nuance. Nolan does it again.