What was the last movie you saw?

[Cathbad]

Murder on the Orient Express (2017)

I finally got an opportunity to watch this version!

A publicity picture before the movie came out had me worried about the man playing Hercule Poirot. But Kenneth Branagh's mustache, unlike the promotional picture, was so perfectly kept, I could forgive him that bit of hair below his lower lip! He had all the Poirot idiosyncrasies down, except he wasn't nearly rotund enough (though I'm sure there was little he could do about that).

From the preamble (mostly missing in other versions) and throughout, the movie stayed faithful to Christie's novel.

ABOUT THE ENDING

Agatha Christie holds a special place in my heart. It was her novels that literally opened my intellect, as much as Poe's prose set in me a desire to write.

The ending, though conforming in fact with Christie's solution, was not hers. But, as some of you might have read my opinions in other threads, I have never been a stickler to any franchise line.

In this case, though I am truly loath to admit it, this movie's ending is the better (may my life-long heroine forgive me).

Albert Finney might have been the better Poirot (and he was), this version is the better movie.

Strike me down for being so skeptical before it came out!

 

[Scookey]

Ironically, as it is one of the films in the featured films list, I rewatched Alien last night with my teenage son - finally let him watch it all the way through without me fast forwarding anything; lights off, sound pumped through the stereo for best impact.
Had forgotten just how well made this film was and how important the sound was too. Sure, there are flaws, like the alien is obviously a guy in a suit and when Ripley escapes at the end, he craft is suddenly facing backwards to view the explosion of the mothership.
My son can be very critical of non-modern FX but his comment at the end was: "Actually a pretty good film, considering how old it is."
Think Alien's longevity is helped by the minimal use of CGI FX, still in its infancy compared to today, and focus on brilliant directing, lighting and make-up/animation.

 

[Joshua Jones]

No judging...

The Christmas Prince: Royal Wedding. With my wife. She loved it. I wanted to pluck my eyes out and stick rusted nails in my ears. Set aside the torture of someone who writes tragic and grimdark SFF being subjected to unadulterated, sugary sweet emotionalism; the storyline, dialog, acting...all terrible. But, they sunk to a new, deeper low when they couldn't be bothered to look up what a limerick is. What they called a limerick was a shoddy bit of four line rhyme which did not have an appropriate rhyming pattern or cadence.

But, I endured it for my wife. Love makes us do crazy things...

 

[Scookey]

You have my sincerest sympathies, Joshua.

 

[Joshua Jones]

You have my sincerest sympathies, Joshua.

Thank you, kind soul. In lieu of flowers, please send a donation to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to SFF Authors...

Oh, and I have been in Firefly therapy for the last week, and wrote a particularly dark entry in the 75 word challenge, so I am slowly recovering...

 

[Joshua Jones]

If anyone wants a synopsis of what I had to endure, here you go:
www.vulture.com/amp/2018/11/a-christmas-prince-royal-wedding-netflix-review.html

In contrast, I just watched "Angela's Christmas", which is actually a really interesting movie, also on Netflix. It deals rather realistically with poverty and making poor choices for the right reasons, showing compassion in the midst of one's own hardship, and the injustice of a harsh criminal justice system... in a kids movie! Oh, and it is set in Ireland, which automatically improves a movie.

 

[Scookey]

Have "Hitman: Agent 47" on Film 4 at the moment. Nearly finished and just sort of hoping it will come sooner rather than later. Hard to pin down exactly why this film is so unloveable. Has action, good effects, OK acting, directing too.... but, it remains just so forgettable. The biggest thing I will remember about it will be never to watch it again.
Ah, think I've put my finger on it, the film has no soul. There is nothing deeper than the 1-dimensional characters, plot or message. Who will live? Who will die? Who cares?

 

[Scookey]

Best thing about Hitman Agent 47, it has just ended!

 

[Jeffbert]

Beware my Lovely (1952) Robert Ryan as a very convincing psycho whom the widow Helen Gordon (Ida Lupino) hires as a helper around her house. Howard Wilton (Robert Ryan) was a 4F in WWI, & is a drifter, for lack of better description. No explanation as to how IL hired RR, only that her tenant was going out of town for several weeks, & he said it was ok to let the hired help stay in his room.

Within 10 minutes of RR's entering her home, IL realizes he is a disturbed man, and subtlety attempts to persuade him to leave. RR has a very poor memory, and forgets where he hung up his coat, which will be significant just when IL has finally gotten him out of her house. IL has a visitor, a deliveryman who has said he will give RR a ride into town. While IL and the delivery guy are in the kitchen, RR has come in & gone upstairs seeking his coat. The guy leaves without him.

Enough said! Great film noir; in fact, a NOIR ALLEY presentation.

Robert Ryan has had several roles as violently inclined men. One a few weeks ago, he was a racist involved in a bank robbery. Very convincing in all those roles. Frightening in this one.

 

[AlexH]

Jingle All the Way (1996)
Why do so many people dislike this? In my opinion, it's not far behind Home Alone in the feel-good-funny Christmas-film stakes.

Solo (2018)
A fun romp. I can see why many Star Wars fans didn't like it - there was no need to fill in everything about Han Solo's backstory.

A Letter to Momo (2011)
It started well but I didn't believe it. Maybe no Japanese studio does the weird characters as well as Ghibli?

 

[Scookey]

Jingle All the Way (1996)
Why do so many people dislike this? In my opinion, it's not far behind Home Alone in the feel-good-funny Christmas-film stakes.

Solo (2018)
A fun romp. I can see why many Star Wars fans didn't like it - there was no need to fill in everything about Han Solo's backstory.

A Letter to Momo (2011)
It started well but I didn't believe it. Maybe no Japanese studio does the weird characters as well as Ghibli?

Solo remains the one Star Wars film I refuse to buy on DVD. Thought is was a massively wasted opportunity and made with all the inconsistent lack of depth you can expect from multiple changes of directors. Some good moments but even the 3D version is still 2D. Total shame...

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

The Shape of Water. Watched it yesterday and still not sure what I think about it. It definitely had its good points, but I also felt there were flaws that made me wonder why all the rapturous reviews and so many nominations and awards. Possibly I was let down by watching it with such high expectations.

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

Nightmare (1964)

Effective psychological shocker from Hammer. A young woman is, understandably, subject to terrifying nightmares because she saw her mother stab her father to death when she was a child. After some time spent at a boarding school, she comes back home to her luxurious home, to be with some loyal servants and a "companion" (unknown to her, actually a nurse hired to watch over her) and her guardian/family lawyer. Soon our emotionally fragile heroine is witnessing a woman she's never seen before wandering around in the night. Other shocking visions drive her into hysterics. The beginnings of a mental breakdown, or is somebody trying to drive her mad? Well, if you've ever seen one of these films before, you know the answer. However, the plot suddenly changes direction at the halfway point. I won't give away any more details. Excellent black-and-white cinematography and good acting add to the enjoyment. The music tries a little too hard to be scary, but that's a minor quibble.

 

[Boaz]

It's a Wonderful Life

 

[Scookey]

Can you believe I actually just watched Chitty Chitty Bang Bang? Had never realised it was written by Ian Flemming and produced by Albert Broccoli. Must have fancied a change from James Bond.

 

[J Riff]

High Plains Drifter - Clint as the ghost of sheriff Jim Duncan, who was whupped ta death while the townspeople did nothing - returns to lay a whupping on everybody concerned and he does a good job. merry Christmas, ya'll."*

 

[Jeffbert]

I too, think Jingle all the Way is a better than average film.

The Keyhole (1933). Anne Brooks (Kay Francis), wife of Schuyler Brooks (Henry Kolker) learns that she is still married to her 1st husband, Maurice Le Brun (Monroe Owsley); who is now blackmailing her. So, she must go meet the cad, and pay him, hoping he will actually finalize the divorce. Her husband thinks she may be unfaithful, so he hires a PI to keep watch over her. PI Neil Davis (George Brent) and his assistant Hank Wales (Allen Jenkins) follow her to Cuba, while on the ship, AJ meets Dot (Glenda Farrell), and falls in love. She thinks he is rich, while he thinks likewise of her. Each intends to soak the other for a small fortune.

When KF learns of her husband's suspicions, she has already fallen for the PI.

Ice Follies of 1939 (1939) - Mary McKay (Joan Crawford) is partnered with Larry Hall (James Stewart) and Eddie Burgess (Lew Ayres) as an ice skating entertainment trio. But hard times occur. Yet, JS & JC marry anyway. As they are in their car, about to pull away from the curb at the theater, the car behind theirs bumps them. Wanting to settle things quickly, movie mogul Douglas Tolliver Jr. (Lewis Stone) offers his card, & says he will make good on the dames tomorrow. JC goes to his office, & ends up with a contract. JS feels emasculated, since his wife is the bread-winner. Eventually, Mort Hodges (Lionel Stander, guy with gravel in his voice) gets him the show he had always desired. But, husband and wife are separated by their careers.

When they are reunited, the film goes from gray scale to full color. My mom would love this part. from 20 minutes to perhaps half an hour, or so it seemed, of singing, skating, etc. I was just a bit bored with this part. But, overall, I enjoyed it.

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

The Man Who Turned to Stone (1957)

Short version: Women in Prison + Mad Science

Talky, sedate, low budget SF/horror flick. Takes place at a facility that seems to be a detention home for female delinquents, although the actresses are well out of their teens. There have been several deaths among the inmates, generally after piercing screams. These are explained away as heart attacks or, in the movie's one genuinely upsetting scene, as suicide. We quickly find out that half a dozen of the institute's staff members drain the life energy out of the young women to keep themselves alive. It turns out that they've been doing this since the 18th century. Not enough life energy, and their flesh grows hard and they die, hence the title. The gizmo isn't working very well on one of the staff, so he's in a zombie-like state, fit only to carry off the victims in the time-honored method of movie monsters. Our heroes are the institute's social worker and the psychiatrist she consults after the faked suicide. The villains don't conceal their plot hardly at all, and everything gets revealed when one of them, guilt-stricken by his actions, confesses all to the psychiatrist and tells him where he's hidden his diary with all the details. It's pretty corny stuff, but not without a certain charm for fans of old-fashioned horror flicks.

 

[Al Jackson]

The Shape of Water. Watched it yesterday and still not sure what I think about it. It definitely had its good points, but I also felt there were flaws that made me wonder why all the rapturous reviews and so many nominations and awards. Possibly I was let down by watching it with such high expectations.

i know what you mean, but it sure was better than Crimson Peak. All in all Shape was entertaining enough but did not have the edge of Pan's Labyrinth or Devils Backbone. I thought del Toro did better with the Hellboy films. Almost think he got the catch-up Oscar for Pan's Labyrinth and a body of work.
I hope he has not lost his touch.

 

[Al Jackson]

Murder on the Orient Express (2017)

I finally got an opportunity to watch this version!

A publicity picture before the movie came out had me worried about the man playing Hercule Poirot. But Kenneth Branagh's mustache, unlike the promotional picture, was so perfectly kept, I could forgive him that bit of hair below his lower lip! He had all the Poirot idiosyncrasies down, except he wasn't nearly rotund enough (though I'm sure there was little he could do about that).

From the preamble (mostly missing in other versions) and throughout, the movie stayed faithful to Christie's novel.

ABOUT THE ENDING

Agatha Christie holds a special place in my heart. It was her novels that literally opened my intellect, as much as Poe's prose set in me a desire to write.

The ending, though conforming in fact with Christie's solution, was not hers. But, as some of you might have read my opinions in other threads, I have never been a stickler to any franchise line.

In this case, though I am truly loath to admit it, this movie's ending is the better (may my life-long heroine forgive me).

Albert Finney might have been the better Poirot (and he was), this version is the better movie.

Strike me down for being so skeptical before it came out!

I really did not understand some of the critics on this version I thought it was good .