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StarTopic Film Chat |ST| What's Your Favorite Acting Turn?

Does anyone know what the deal is with the release of The Fabelmans? Everywhere I look says it opened in wide release yesterday, but I can't find any local theaters playing it. Even when I go to the movie's official website it shows the nearest theater playing it is 130 miles away..? That doesn't sound like a very wide release. 😕

I need my Spielberg fix
 
Does anyone know what the deal is with the release of The Fabelmans? Everywhere I look says it opened in wide release yesterday, but I can't find any local theaters playing it. Even when I go to the movie's official website it shows the nearest theater playing it is 130 miles away..? That doesn't sound like a very wide release. 😕

I need my Spielberg fix
It went “wide,” but only in the sense that it was in, like, 650+ theaters rather than ten. If it’s successful enough, perhaps it adds theaters, but who knows.

Between that and Glass Onion I don’t even know what’s happening with theatrical release windows anymore.
 
It went “wide,” but only in the sense that it was in, like, 650+ theaters rather than ten. If it’s successful enough, perhaps it adds theaters, but who knows.

Between that and Glass Onion I don’t even know what’s happening with theatrical release windows anymore.
Glass Onion I get because it was funded by Netflix so the fact that they got a theatrical release at all is a miracle. But Fabelmans is a Spielberg movie! Distributed by Universal! It should be huge!
 
Watched Pink Floyd's The Wall last night. Did not expect to love it as much as I did. Just an absolute feast visually, great music, some of the best animation ever to be featured in a feature length film. Its pure cinema. Just a reminder that movies are good as hell.
 
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Glass Onion I get because it was funded by Netflix so the fact that they got a theatrical release at all is a miracle. But Fabelmans is a Spielberg movie! Distributed by Universal! It should be huge!
I’m just quietly peeved at the likelihood that Glass Onion will never get a proper physical release because Netflix loves to moneyhat directors I enjoy. 😒

I think studios, generally, are a little wary of the sorts of movies they open wide. Mainstream genre films have been doing well, but dramas and more Serious films have floundered a bit.
 
I’m just quietly peeved at the likelihood that Glass Onion will never get a proper physical release because Netflix loves to moneyhat directors I enjoy. 😒

I think studios, generally, are a little wary of the sorts of movies they open wide. Mainstream genre films have been doing well, but dramas and more Serious films have floundered a bit.
Netflix is probably whats holding back a physical release of Other Side of the Wind, which makes me so mad.
 
At least there’s an outside hope that Criterion will finagle something for an Orson Welles joint, and possibly even for The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, though I’m not holding my breath.
Still hoping for a Welles boxset. Any day now they'll do that and Chaplin and Kurosawa....any day now...
 
Just watched Bardo at the kinoplex. Fuckin surreal masterpiece. Absolute kinography if you will. Bardo is the realest movie about being Mexican I have ever seen. Never watched anything so effortlessly employ meta surrealism to tackle paradoxes like ours (being Spanish yet indigenous, light skinned yet dark skinned, too Mexican yet too American, etc.). It's just so open about both personal and cultural issues. For being about an intensely confusing country/culture it never gets lost within itself. There's some real tear jerking scenes but Bardo is hilarious too so it avoids getting saccharine. The premise of the movie is inherently pretentious to a degree, but people should see it just for Iñarittu's directing. Dude makes some of the only flashy long takes that draw attention to themselves while still selling the story. Him and Khondji really delivered on some cool imagery, the way Khondji lights the scene is probably the best I've seen from any movie this year. It's a shame some of my fellow Hispanics are eating up patronizing tokenism in throwaway capeshit that's not even made by people like us while this movie is out bombing. Nobody else out there is nailing Bowie needle drops.
 
I caught The Fabelmans tonight in theaters before it hits PVOD this week and honestly...I thought it was decent? There are a handful of really compelling, introspective scenes that interrogate Spielberg's own presumed selfishness in prioritizing his art over his family, and Gabriel LaBelle (young Spielberg) and Paul Dano do a great job. Judd Hirsch has a killer single scene as well that really nails the fulcrum of the story. However, I felt that Michelle Williams gave an extremely miscalculated, over-the-top performance, and John Williams' final score is pretty awful in my book. Made many of the dramatic scenes feel like a PBS special. The movie also didn't use its 2h40 min runtime as wisely as I'd hope from the GOAT. It's like a 3-3.5/5 for me.

The good news is I also watched When Harry Met Sally and Amadeus for the first time this weekend, and those two are 5/5 BANGERS
 
What are the best films of 2022?

I'm super late to the party here, but:

The Banshees of Inisherin
Marcel the Shell with Shoes On
Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio
Everything Everywhere All At Once
The Batman
Top Gun: Maverick
Glass Onion
Nope
Barbarian
X
Bodies Bodies Bodies
 
I'm super late to the party here, but:

The Banshees of Inisherin
Marcel the Shell with Shoes On
Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio
Everything Everywhere All At Once
The Batman
Top Gun: Maverick
Glass Onion
Nope
Barbarian
X
Bodies Bodies Bodies
I actually managed to catch a few of these and I'm pretty proud of that, as it's usually pretty tough to find anything other than the typical blockbusters near me. Absolutely loved Everything Everywhere, it released in like February or something but I knew all the way back then it would be my movie of the year and that hasn't changed. Marcel was adorable and such a unique film in today's market, was absolutely surreal to watch a movie like that in the theater. Banshees we talked about, I was very impressed but am still digesting because damn, Nope I've gone over a ton in bellydrum's thread for it, and I really really wish I coulda caught Glass Onion in theaters but I guess I'll see it in a few weeks on the Flix of Net.

Oh and Maverick in IMAX was a godfuckingdamn experience.
 
I actually managed to catch a few of these and I'm pretty proud of that, as it's usually pretty tough to find anything other than the typical blockbusters near me. Absolutely loved Everything Everywhere, it released in like February or something but I knew all the way back then it would be my movie of the year and that hasn't changed. Marcel was adorable and such a unique film in today's market, was absolutely surreal to watch a movie like that in the theater. Banshees we talked about, I was very impressed but am still digesting because damn, Nope I've gone over a ton in bellydrum's thread for it, and I really really wish I coulda caught Glass Onion in theaters but I guess I'll see it in a few weeks on the Flix of Net.

Oh and Maverick in IMAX was a godfuckingdamn experience.
Hell yeah! I was fortunate to catch Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio in limited theatrical release over Thanksgiving break and, imo, it's a stop-motion masterpiece that packs an enormous wallop. My mom and I were both a puddle of tears by the end. I can't recommend it enough, and it's streaming on Netflix now!
 
Hell yeah! I was fortunate to catch Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio in limited theatrical release over Thanksgiving break and, imo, it's a stop-motion masterpiece that packs an enormous wallop. My mom and I were both a puddle of tears by the end. I can't recommend it enough, and it's streaming on Netflix now!
It's definitely on my list! A significant chunk of my twitter timeline for the past month has been people gushing about it, and I love stop-motion.
 
I'm super late to the party here, but:

The Banshees of Inisherin
Marcel the Shell with Shoes On
Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio
Everything Everywhere All At Once
The Batman
Top Gun: Maverick
Glass Onion
Nope
Barbarian
X
Bodies Bodies Bodies

Not an attack on you, more the state of movies, but I've been befuddled by the TopGun praise, and I watched it in IMAX. Outside of a few scenes, an alternate universe would call it an updated rehash of Star Wars and behind enemy lines. I only say that because a common refrain of "modern" critique has been, "it's just like that other movie." And it's not like it does them any better, there are oodles of movies where the hot shot annoys the head brass but they have to use him anyways.

But I have not much to offer in the other way, I spent the year binging Columbo made for tv movies and saw just a few of the things you listed.

Everything everywhere all at once is my favorite of those few. But I'm hoping to see Pinocchio soon so maybe that will be it.
 
Not an attack on you, more the state of movies, but I've been befuddled by the TopGun praise, and I watched it in IMAX. Outside of a few scenes, an alternate universe would call it an updated rehash of Star Wars and behind enemy lines. I only say that because a common refrain of "modern" critique has been, "it's just like that other movie." And it's not like it does them any better, there are oodles of movies where the hot shot annoys the head brass but they have to use him anyways.
I can see this, but for me I think part of it was nostalgia (it felt like an old movie, not just a reboot of an old movie), and part was, and I recognize this is sort of an abstract thing, having so many of the in-flight scenes being actually filmed in camera instead of green-screened and CGI'ed. And some of the cinematography in general was really lovely, some was really really intense, so it was a breathtaking experience for me to watch on a big screen, with my eyes somehow being able to tell that shit was real, and that just elevated everything else for me.

If Maverick had not been produced that way, if it had been green screen cockpit shots and such, it probably woulda felt like just any other rehashed movie to me. But it felt special, in a way that a scene breakdown or script reading can't really quantify.

It reminds me of how, on paper, the original Star Wars shouldn't have been all that different from Buck Rogers or any of the old scifi of the day. But the way it was made somehow made the final product more than the sum of its parts.

If any of that makes sense. 😅
 
I can see this, but for me I think part of it was nostalgia (it felt like an old movie, not just a reboot of an old movie), and part was, and I recognize this is sort of an abstract thing, having so many of the in-flight scenes being actually filmed in camera instead of green-screened and CGI'ed. And some of the cinematography in general was really lovely, some was really really intense, so it was a breathtaking experience for me to watch on a big screen, with my eyes somehow being able to tell that shit was real, and that just elevated everything else for me.

If Maverick had not been produced that way, if it had been green screen cockpit shots and such, it probably woulda felt like just any other rehashed movie to me. But it felt special, in a way that a scene breakdown or script reading can't really quantify.

It reminds me of how, on paper, the original Star Wars shouldn't have been all that different from Buck Rogers or any of the old scifi of the day. But the way it was made somehow made the final product more than the sum of its parts.

If any of that makes sense. 😅
I get that, but that's kind of what I implying by the few scenes. I'm all for practical, recently watched Tenet and enjoyed it, especially because I knew it was really happening, but I felt TGM was a bit too conventional and didn't really utilize imax to the fullest.

Recently watched an imax docu about an architect, that's a decade old plus now and felt more immersed by the few aerial shots in that, I missed that feeling of flight in top gun.

Also they completely understood the assignment of the volleyball scene and did the exact opposite with quick cuts that never focus on anything .
 
Not an attack on you, more the state of movies, but I've been befuddled by the TopGun praise, and I watched it in IMAX. Outside of a few scenes, an alternate universe would call it an updated rehash of Star Wars and behind enemy lines. I only say that because a common refrain of "modern" critique has been, "it's just like that other movie." And it's not like it does them any better, there are oodles of movies where the hot shot annoys the head brass but they have to use him anyways.

But I have not much to offer in the other way, I spent the year binging Columbo made for tv movies and saw just a few of the things you listed.

Everything everywhere all at once is my favorite of those few. But I'm hoping to see Pinocchio soon so maybe that will be it.
Star Wars is a rip-off of Kurosawa's The Hidden Fortress, but I still love it (well, the first 3 and TLJ). For me, it's not always about innovation but iteration. Top Gun: Maverick is one of the better, more endearing legacy sequels I've seen. It's definitely not going to win any Screenplay awards, but I had a thorough, surprisingly emotional blast with it?

If you end up watching Pinocchio, I'd love to hear your take!
 
Star Wars is a rip-off of Kurosawa's The Hidden Fortress, but I still love it (well, the first 3 and TLJ). For me, it's not always about innovation but iteration.
I definitely agree, and I'm not trying to say that that's my definitive take on top gun as a rehash or whatever, It's just in this era of youtubers and culture wars, that has been a big problem for people. Like how 'episode 7 is a rehash of episode 4'. I'm just genuinely puzzled by the reaction because at least fairly recently Tom Cruise was considered really bad due to his connections, so it can't be just because it's his movie, though a part of it is because it's his movie because he does practical effects and stunts.
 
So a theater an hour away from me finally popped up with showings of The Fablemans for just a few days and this week only. So I went for it.

Spoilering this because I do cover some story beats.
Overall I understand the criticism I've seen online, but I think when it's obvious a movie was made by someone who had a vision and wanted to make it (rather than a studio project made for the market), I tend to cut it some slack. That probably sounds a little pretentious but I do. 😅 Plus I like getting lost in character pieces so.. even though it felt like two movies stitched together once they got to California, I actually probably coulda handled a little more, even.

But that's all a me-thing, not necessarily a reflection of the movie itself.

Though actually speaking of me-things, there's something really specific in this movie: a blink-and-you'll-miss-it shot where Sam is coping with his parents divorcing by imagining that he's filming it. I've never seen that represented in film before, but it is totally a thing I've done all my life. Not necessarily even traumatic events, just life in general. Imagining how I'd dramatize and film things that've happened to me, good or bad, has been my way of processing, just, life. And it struck me hard to see even just a split second of that in the movie.

Also the reverence Spielberg shows for the physicality of film, the detail shots of him handling it and working the machines, I loved that. It reminded me of what it was like as a kid in a relatively pre-digital world still working with tapes and machines to make little movies, and how much of a physical skill it was. And his experimentation with how to make special effects work! I also used small firecrackers like that to simulate gunshots, and I experienced something very similar to the scene where he shows his film to the group of kids who were stunned into silence and attention at the explosion effects (though mine was a classroom instead of a scout troop). That moment where they stop giggling at seeing their friends on screen and suddenly believe what's going on, that's priceless. And I also had the experience of making and showing a film for the graduating class of my high school, so watching him set the projector up in the middle of the gym was kinda giving me stress flashbacks. 😅

Okay I didn't mean to make this all about me but like... I guess that's how the movie made me feel. With some exceptions in the social/familial side of the story, I saw a lot of myself up on the screen today. And I loved that, because it's quite rare for me to really feel seen in a movie. Also I've always loved film and this movie so obviously does, too, so it's like watching a movie about something I'm interested in except that thing I'm interested in happens to be movies themselves. And I think that's really neat how the experience sorta folds in on itself like that.

But yeah, Michelle Williams made some odd choices. Though in looking stuff up, I see Spielberg's mother really did go through bad depressive episodes and really did bring home a pet monkey, so with Spielberg himself directing her as his own mom it makes me wonder if she really was kinda like that in real life..?

Also Judd Hirsch's taxi driver looked so much like Ray Liotta that I did a double take.

lol, Judd Hirsch. Taxi. 🤣
 
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So a theater an hour away from me finally popped up with showings of The Fablemans for just a few days and this week only. So I went for it.

Spoilering this because I do cover some story beats.
Overall I understand the criticism I've seen online, but I think when it's obvious a movie was made by someone who had a vision and wanted to make it (rather than a studio project made for the market), I tend to cut it some slack. That probably sounds a little pretentious but I do. 😅 Plus I like getting lost in character pieces so.. even though it felt like two movies stitched together once they got to California, I actually probably coulda handled a little more, even.

But that's all a me-thing, not necessarily a reflection of the movie itself.

Though actually speaking of me-things, there's something really specific in this movie: a blink-and-you'll-miss-it shot where Sam is coping with his parents divorcing by imagining that he's filming it. I've never seen that represented in film before, but it is totally a thing I've done all my life. Not necessarily even traumatic events, just life in general. Imagining how I'd dramatize and film things that've happened to me, good or bad, has been my way of processing, just, life. And it struck me hard to see even just a split second of that in the movie.

Also the reverence Spielberg shows for the physicality of film, the detail shots of him handling it and working the machines, I loved that. It reminded me of what it was like as a kid in a relatively pre-digital world still working with tapes and machines to make little movies, and how much of a physical skill it was. And his experimentation with how to make special effects work! I also used small firecrackers like that to simulate gunshots, and I experienced something very similar to the scene where he shows his film to the group of kids who were stunned into silence and attention at the explosion effects (though mine was a classroom instead of a scout troop). That moment where they stop giggling at seeing their friends on screen and suddenly believe what's going on, that's priceless. And I also had the experience of making and showing a film for the graduating class of my high school, so watching him set the projector up in the middle of the gym was kinda giving me stress flashbacks. 😅

Okay I didn't mean to make this all about me but like... I guess that's how the movie made me feel. With some exceptions in the social/familial side of the story, I saw a lot of myself up on the screen today. And I loved that, because it's quite rare for me to really feel seen in a movie. Also I've always loved film and this movie so obviously does, too, so it's like watching a movie about something I'm interested in except that thing I'm interested in happens to be movies themselves. And I think that's really neat how the experience sorta folds in on itself like that.

But yeah, Michelle Williams made some odd choices. Though in looking stuff up, I see Spielberg's mother really did go through bad depressive episodes and really did bring home a pet monkey, so with Spielberg himself directing her as his own mom it makes me wonder if she really was kinda like that in real life..?

Also Judd Hirsch's taxi driver looked so much like Ray Liotta that I did a double take.

lol, Judd Hirsch. Taxi. 🤣
So glad you enjoyed it! Yeah, my Michelle Williams caveats were not based in characterization at all - I'm sure Spielberg and Kushner nailed it, and I'm sure Williams gave the exact performance Spielberg wanted. For me, it was just a little too theatrical throughout - which totally makes sense during the first act based on what we learn later, but I wish her performance became a bit more grounded after we learn things from her perspective. Really well made, directed, and written on the whole. LOVED Paul Dano and Gabriel LaBelle.
 
Looking forward to watch Bardo , heard tons of bad reviews but i honestly don't care, i expect another "realismo magico" romp from Iñarittu.

I have my Avatar 2 tickets for tomorrow, it has been a long time since I've this excited for a movie.
 
My movie watching has really dropped off since picking up COLUMBO but honestly, most episodes are almost 1 and a 1/2 hours long? That's practically a film, yes?

First time Columbo watcher, it's god-tier entertainment, check it out if you have the time, I get it now, #legend for a reason.

iu
 
My movie watching has really dropped off since picking up COLUMBO but honestly, most episodes are almost 1 and a 1/2 hours long? That's practically a film, yes?

First time Columbo watcher, it's god-tier entertainment, check it out if you have the time, I get it now, #legend for a reason
Funny, I just saw my first Columbo a couple months ago! Maybe because it kept popping up on my free tv Roku channel feed? Anyway, as you say, solid entertainment. Peter Falk is great. Now that I’ve seen him in Columbo, his appearance in wim wenders’ wings of desire is even more bizarre and delightful.
I read something that pointed to the social class aspect of Columbo — this kind of shabby, mild-mannered seeming regular guy taking down a rogue’s gallery of white collar villains — assholes who think their wealth or status will allow them to get away with literal murder. That’s why knowing who commits the crime at the beginning works: because we enjoy seeing Columbo insinuate his way into the halls of status and power, infallibly and unflappably puncturing corruption and hypocrisy. And when he does secure the upper hand and goes in for a power move, how satisfying to see him finally bring down the hammer!
 
I read something that pointed to the social class aspect of Columbo — this kind of shabby, mild-mannered seeming regular guy taking down a rogue’s gallery of white collar villains — assholes who think their wealth or status will allow them to get away with literal murder. That’s why knowing who commits the crime at the beginning works: because we enjoy seeing Columbo insinuate his way into the halls of status and power, infallibly and unflappably puncturing corruption and hypocrisy. And when he does secure the upper hand and goes in for a power move, how satisfying to see him finally bring down the hammer!
iu


Columbo is a fucking saint, even if this quote image is missing a sentence or two.
 
Guillmero del Toro’s Pinocchio: Not sure what’s up with this influx of Pinocchio movies lately, but at least this one was actually good.
 
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I watched Avatar last thursday and it was AWESOME, i felt it has more nuance than the first one and i believe the experience changes a lot if you are a parent.

BTW in my showing they projected a very kick ass trailer for "Oppenheimer", but i search and search in YouTube and could´t find it, so it is only projected in movie theaters?
 
Avatar: The Way of Water was more visually stunning and emotionally compelling than the first one. I think I loved it, warts and all! And the 3h15 minute runtime felt like 2h30 to me because I was so entranced by what I was seeing. Third act is a Cameron all-timer!
 
So I was not really interested in seeing Puss in Boots like at all, but then commercials started up almost constantly on TV and...

Lookit the flowers
mSfw22Z.jpg


Lookit the milk
HDFbwv2.jpg


Lookit the cloth textures and the dog's fur
exzLc2n.png


Lookit the speedy speed boy lines
fBP5B2b.jpg


They're actually going for a painted look? And it's even more lovely in motion??

I actually wanna see this now. As dismissive as I've been about DreamWorks animation and the Shrekiverse, I'm actually considering seeing this in theaters for the full effect. It's gorgeous.

Mainstream 3DCGI movies are finally breaking into some really lovely stylization and I am here for it omg
 
So I was not really interested in seeing Puss in Boots like at all, but then commercials started up almost constantly on TV and...

Lookit the flowers
mSfw22Z.jpg


Lookit the milk
HDFbwv2.jpg


Lookit the cloth textures and the dog's fur
exzLc2n.png


Lookit the speedy speed boy lines
fBP5B2b.jpg


They're actually going for a painted look? And it's even more lovely in motion??

I actually wanna see this now. As dismissive as I've been about DreamWorks animation and the Shrekiverse, I'm actually considering seeing this in theaters for the full effect. It's gorgeous.

Mainstream 3DCGI movies are finally breaking into some really lovely stylization and I am here for it omg
That 97% on Rotten Tomatoes is helping make my decision too haha, definitely trying to catch this and Babylon over winter break! Plus a second viewing of Avatar 2
 
That 97% on Rotten Tomatoes is helping make my decision too haha, definitely trying to catch this and Babylon over winter break! Plus a second viewing of Avatar 2
First of all, thanks for reminding me to check and see if my local theater is playing Babylon

Second of all, I cannot believe my local theater is playing Babylon but not The Fablemans.
 
So I was not really interested in seeing Puss in Boots like at all, but then commercials started up almost constantly on TV and...

Lookit the flowers
mSfw22Z.jpg


Lookit the milk
HDFbwv2.jpg


Lookit the cloth textures and the dog's fur
exzLc2n.png


Lookit the speedy speed boy lines
fBP5B2b.jpg


They're actually going for a painted look? And it's even more lovely in motion??

I actually wanna see this now. As dismissive as I've been about DreamWorks animation and the Shrekiverse, I'm actually considering seeing this in theaters for the full effect. It's gorgeous.

Mainstream 3DCGI movies are finally breaking into some really lovely stylization and I am here for it omg


I stand by my opinion that PiB is the best entry of the Shrek franchise (Zack Galafinakis' second best acting role) and folks slept on the Netflix show which was also great. Love that they're upping the animation, something I can't help but thank Spiderverse for partially fueling.
 
I stand by my opinion that PiB is the best entry of the Shrek franchise (Zack Galafinakis' second best acting role) and folks slept on the Netflix show which was also great. Love that they're upping the animation, something I can't help but thank Spiderverse for partially fueling.
Funny you should mention SpiderVerse:

The last time we heard about Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, still without an official name, a different director was attached to the project.

Now, instead of Bob Persichetti (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse), Puss In Boots: The Last Wish will be helmed by Joel Crawford and produced by Mark Swift.

Looks like SpiderVerse's director was attached in the early stages. So I'm thinking you're right to attribute PiB's new vibes to that movie.
 
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I can’t believe the audacity of Rian Johnson to unironically use this as a plot twist

Anyway movie rules, go watch it
 
Avatar 2 was emotionally richer and more compelling with its characters on a second viewing. Really, really like that movie despite some pacing issues. 2nd and 3rd act are pretty unreal for me.

Glass Onion is a banger, and I'm checking out Babylon either the 29th/30th and Puss in Boots probably the day after Christmas.
 
Some of my favorite films this year are on Obama's favorites list and I'm gonna be irrationally smug about that for a while
 
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Hearing that PiB slaps from people whose opinions on film I value p highly, so I’m bumping that and RRR up my must watch list.

this was actually a p good year for movies, fami!
 
Matilda the Musical: I had absolutely no idea this was a thing until a couple weeks ago, but that was actually a lot of fun! Revolting Children is an absolute banger.
 
Caught up on some films from the last few years over the holidays.

Watched 1917.
That was a fantastic war flick! Great effects and the devastation on show was heartwrenching.

No Time to Die.
Was a bit confused as to what was going on at a couple of points and the exact nature of the nano weapon, but I still really enjoyed it. It had a bit of everything I like from a James Bond film (supervillain lairs, ludicrous action set pieces, laconic wit), but it also clearly showcased the entire supporting cast from the last five films well. And Lashana Lynch and Ana de Armas all had fantastic scenes as action heroes in their own right too. It just felt like it rounded off the Daniel Craig era really well.

Ghostbusters: Afterlife
This took me back to various 80s films, I loved the characters. The opening was great, and the depiction of Gozer and co as weird and fitting as ever. Ending was a bit cheesy but the post-credits stuff was cool too.

The Batman
Enjoyed this as a thriller in its own right. I don’t follow much of the DC stuff but I liked Pattinson and also the depiction of the Batmobile and Catwoman. Just felt a bit more grounded and less fantastical. What really stood out- the odd bit where he’s using the wing glider to escape and crashes. He’s so deadly serious for the rest of the film that it made the crash landing really cool just for the change of pace!

All in all it’s been rare for me to watch a run of stuff where I really enjoyed all of them in such a long time. I got a copy of The Green Knight for Christmas and am really looking forward to a free evening where I can settle in and watch it, I love mythology.
 
Kicked off Japan January with a viewing kf 1958s Giants and Toys, a beautiful film about how capitalism is a corrosive force that destories all it touches, disease. The movie has the sumptuous look of a Frank Tashlin picture, but takes a far more acidic attitude towards consumerism than one could expect to see from Hollywood at the time. Corporations destroy lives, love, families, exploit revolutionary ideals, workers, and the promise of safety and a brighter future to sell something as cheap and trashy as caramel. The movie sums up the limits of capitalism in a way still relevant today, you can only sell so much caramel. 4.5/5.
Also to inaugurate the new year, I watched The Transformers: The Movie, a favorite of mine that looks gorgeous on 4k. Alsways love to hear Orson Welles say the names of shitty toys <4/5>. Following that was a viewing of King Kong, which remains a beautiful and thrilling picture, to film and the American imagination what hydrogen is to water <5/5>
Finally, tonight I revisited 8 Diagram Pole Fighter on the Arrow bluray, a revelatory new scan. Might actually he the finest action movie ever made <5/5>.
 
Kicked off Japan January with a viewing kf 1958s Giants and Toys, a beautiful film about how capitalism is a corrosive force that destories all it touches, disease. The movie has the sumptuous look of a Frank Tashlin picture, but takes a far more acidic attitude towards consumerism than one could expect to see from Hollywood at the time. Corporations destroy lives, love, families, exploit revolutionary ideals, workers, and the promise of safety and a brighter future to sell something as cheap and trashy as caramel. The movie sums up the limits of capitalism in a way still relevant today, you can only sell so much caramel. 4.5/5.
Also to inaugurate the new year, I watched The Transformers: The Movie, a favorite of mine that looks gorgeous on 4k. Alsways love to hear Orson Welles say the names of shitty toys <4/5>. Following that was a viewing of King Kong, which remains a beautiful and thrilling picture, to film and the American imagination what hydrogen is to water <5/5>
Finally, tonight I revisited 8 Diagram Pole Fighter on the Arrow bluray, a revelatory new scan. Might actually he the finest action movie ever made <5/5>.
TF The Movie was a foundational touchstone of my childhood. From the shock of seeing my childhood hero die, to then wearing out the tape on the VHS release, to poring over the mild differences between the cinema release and the comic adaptation of it that’s even more violent (Ultra Magnus gets drawn and quartered by the Sweeps in it!).

I always quite liked the hopeful sign off of a golden age and the rounding out of TF mythology into a future singularity with ‘Till all are one’. Which seemed fairly deep until the next series of the cartoon and the comics kicks off again with another wave of new toys to sell.
 
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I just saw Way of Water and while I'm one of those people who normally knock the original Avatar for being kinda overrated (at the time) I gotta admit I loved the absolute hell outta this one.

Seriously one of the prettiest things I've ever seen. I'm gonna need time to digest all that, wow.
 


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