I Just Watched (Films)

[Wrathbone]

Dunkirk

Beautifully presented, incredibly tense, confusingly told. As much as I enjoyed the film, I don't think the weird out-of-order arrangement of scenes added much, and if anything it muddled things as I tried to figure out what on earth was going on. I guess that may have been an attempt to convey the confusion of the situation? Probably should have just shown the damn thing in order.

Still, what a powerful spectacle.

7/10

[Raid]

Can't argue with any of that. Dunkirk was more an experience than a narrative, but I think it made sense to do it that way when the real-life event is pretty well known.

[Alan]

Its pure Nolan. Audio visual spectacles. I'll go see all his movies in the cinema, imax even because they are so well shot and well made its just a pity they are all crap beyond that surface candy.



Finch (appleTV)
Tom hanks, his dog and a robot make their way through the apocalypse. We lasted about 20-30mins before being so annoyed by the robot we had to turn it off. It seems to be well received but the robot made Chappie seem like someone I'd want to hang out with. I might try again later when I'm feeling less grumpy. :p

[Achtung Englander]

A superb analysis on why Dune has that certain special element over other CGI. Its all due to lighting and direction.

[Wrathbone]

Tenet

Utter balls. If a plot is demanding in that it is complex and leaves things unanswered and up for speculation, that can work well. If a plot is so obtrusive that after a first viewing the audience has no fucking clue what was going on or why anything was happening, you’re watching Tenet. Nolan can be a bit out there with his sci if, but he shat the bed with this one.

Special mention has to go to the purposeless cameo scene with Sir Michael Caine, playing a character called Sir Michael. Jesus wept.

It does look absolutely breathtaking, for what it’s worth.

4/10

[Raid]

The Infiltrator

A biographical thriller about the infiltration of Pablo Escobar's drug smuggling operation by an American agent. Can't say I enjoyed it much; given the setting I would have expected there to be significantly more tension, but there's barely any, and so it all feels a little dull. The acting's decent, but the film as a whole is nowhere near as exciting as its premise would suggest.

[Animalmother]

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
I watched this when it first came out and it just didn't work for me. It was confusing, slow and a wee bit boring.

Rewatching it 10 years later and I appreciate how very good it really is. The acting is great, the slowly piecing together of the story and the so 1970's set design you can practically smell the stale cigarette smoke wafting through the screen. Everyone is just about perfectly cast and even Tom Hardy's cockney mumbling doesn't ruin it. The violence is sparse but Jesus is it genuinely unpleasant and shocking in places....

Spoiler

"Do you know this woman?". "No".... Splatter

If anyone like me didn't get on with it on first viewing it's definitely worth another look. Shame there was never another one made.

[Hatredsheart]

Just bought the original of this and Smiley's People, both Alec Guinness and Gary Oldman do cracking jobs with this role.

[Achtung Englander]

Just bought the original of this and Smiley's People, both Alec Guinness and Gary Oldman do cracking jobs with this role.

absolutely. The BBC adaption is actually closer to the book. Smiley's People is also excellent

[Achtung Englander]

King Richard

This really didn't need to be 2.5 hours. OK, nothing special.

6/10

[Solitaire]

Love "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy," for all those reasons you've mentioned and so much more. The old-school spycraft intrigue, the insane lifestyles and choices that must be made in sacrifice to statehood, the Russians being sold not as cattle for the slaughter but truly dangerous and calculating enemies... Doesn't knowing this all happens, under our noses, get in your head, just a little?

Now don't laugh at me - I've got a boring week ahead of me (thanks Eny for a bit of Breakpoint today! That helped spice things up a bit):

Dances With Wolves

Alrighty then. This made boatloads of money immediately upon it's release, won lots of awards and such. My quick observations: Did Costner read from his journal, i.e., narrate, like a twelve-year-old boy on purpose? Was he pretending to be a rather poorly-read American officer? But the journal was neatly written and decent sketching talent displayed... I dunno. Really threw me out of the story every time I heard his voice. The leading lady pretending she can barely speak English was also painful, though I can understand how thoroughly difficult that would be for a native-English-speaking actor. Anyway, it's a decent cowboy/American frontier story, with lots of telegraphed twists and tropes, and is historically important to the Sioux, not so much the Pawnee however, who are depicted as horse-riding demons.

[Snowy]

I haven't seen that one for years!

[Animalmother]

Tatanka!!

[Maturin]

I unashamedly adore Dances with Wolves. The wooden narration aside, it's brilliantly directed by Costner. The man should have forged his subsequent career behind the camera, not in front of it!

I do actually quite like Costner though as an actor, so that's a bit unfair. Especially post-Prince of Thieves.

Also, it has one of the greatest film scores in cinema history IMO.

[Achtung Englander]

Last Night in Soho

This film is nuts but in a good way. It does come across more like a well polished TV movie. The story does not come across as original and the characters feels a tad cardboard cut out and not very fleshed out but its never boring and it certainly makes you question what is going on. I enjoyed it a lot. As a horror it fails as it is not scary and relies occassionally on jump tactics. As a thriller it works very well.

7/10