I Just Watched (Films)

[Raid]

JFK
Why oh why did I not check the run time on this before I sat down to watch it. I think I just assumed, being as it was from 1992, that it'd probably be 90 minutes long. It was three and a half hours, and I only realised at the one hour mark. It doesn't matter how many oscars it won for cinematography and editing (evidently not editing down), no film is going to sustain my attention for that length of time, even when it's depicting one of the most important mysteries of the 20th century.

It's... fine, I guess? I wouldn't describe the acting as stellar, Costner comes across as a bit wooden at times, and it took me an embarrassing amount of time to realise Lee Harvey Oswald was played by Gary Oldman. The big issue for me though is that it feels like the conspiracy plot goes nowhere, and even when they take one of the supposed perpetrators to court, said perpetrator's involvement doesn't seem to be even mentioned unless I missed something. The final half hour is a pretty good rundown of the alleged events of the day of the assassination, showing why the official investigation's claim was clearly nonsensical, but to me it barely felt connected to the rest of the film.

It's not worth watching, purely because of the length. It was just too easy to switch off and miss something, and when things didn't seem to connect at the end I just felt like I'd missed something critical.

[Sly Boots]

JFK
Why oh why did I not check the run time on this before I sat down to watch it. I think I just assumed, being as it was from 1992, that it'd probably be 90 minutes long. It was three and a half hours

* glances towards Dances With Wolves *

[Hatredsheart]

[Animalmother]

65
A spaceship crash lands on a planet filled with dinosaurs. It's perfectly fine if a little bit dull and slow moving, too much walking about and not enough dinosaurs. The 90 minute runtime should have been perfect but it felt twice as long for some reason.

Massive spoiler...it's Earth 65 million years ago just before the meteor struck! Your told this within the first 10 minutes out of apparent fear that the audience is thick I assume.

[ManBearSquid]

It's... fine, I guess? I wouldn't describe the acting as stellar, Costner comes across as a bit wooden at times, and it took me an embarrassing amount of time to realise Lee Harvey Oswald was played by Gary Oldman. .

Understandable, the man is a master of his craft and blends into his roles so seamlessly:

[Solitaire]

I confess I have a soft spot for it but Ive not seen it in 20 years

Re: Meet Joe Black, the only thing I remember with any clarity is how freakin' gorgeous Claire Forlani was. All those lingering close-ups! Goodness.

[Solitaire]

To Catch a Thief

I’ve found myself with some extra time of late, so I’ve been catching up on movies that I’ve been meaning to watch but never seemed to be able to get around to them. This particular old movie has my favorite actor – miles ahead of my second favorite – Cary Grant. His comic timing was always impeccable, as was his wardrobe, and he did so well in his dramatic scenes. He was the quintessential movie star, in my opinion, and I love all of his movies that I’ve seen. This one, I’ve caught bits and pieces but never seen from beginning to end. I recently remedied this…

Apart from a couple of completely and ridiculously implausible scenes, I thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of the story. The scenery is, of course, outrageously amazing – his character’s villa is a dream come true for my tastes and sensibilities, for sure. I can see now why Grace Kelly was on the list of Hollywood’s elite stars, what an amazing beauty, that she projected with such confidence, and held her own against Grant’s acting chops. I guessed the twist at the end, but I don’t think it was that difficult to figure out. It was fun watching it all come to a conclusion, silly as it was. The Italian police are portrayed, in every instance, as bumbling Clouseaus, but I suppose this was the intent, for further comic relief.

As an aside, I think any man who's having some trouble with the fairer sex would do well to watch and study Grant's movies. He's practically always flirting with some gorgeous woman and has a 'way' about him, how he carries himself and delivers his lines, great eye contact, etc. I know life isn't a written script, we frequently have no idea what to say, but faking the confidence until you've actually got it, in my opinion this is the toughest and most important battle to win.

9.5/10 would heartily recommend, along with a couple glasses of red wine.

[Alan]

I agree! I think Grant is the epitome of the classic Hollywood star. Theres quite a few I dont get the appeal of (Jimmy Stewart, I'm looking at you!) but Grant is just so watchable. Hell, I think he'd still be a star if he kept his birth name of Archibald Leach The scene at the start of Topper where he's driving a car with his feet while sat on the headrest cracks me up every time, its all in the face.


What A Way To Go (1964)
Shirley MacLaine recounts the deaths of her 4 previous husbands as she tries to convince her psychiatrist that shes cursed. Loved it! From a superficial bent Shirley sure is easy on the eyes but she also plays it perfectly. Then the male supporting cast of Paul Newman, Robert Mitchum, Dean Martin, Gene Kelly, Bob Cummings and Dick Van Dyke! Cracker of a list. Its packed with laughs, particularly the deaths of husbands 2 and 3 Its a real good time.

[Achtung Englander]

To Catch a Thief is one of my all time favourites

Soli - did you guess who was the Cat?

I recently read Grant's bio. He was a very intelligent guy, way ahead of his contemporaries. He decided to stay in the US and risk everything to make a name for himself instead of going back home to Bristol with the safety with his circus family and he singlehandedly broke the MCA "Octopus" system by going independent and not re-signing with the MCA. That is why he was hated by the industry and was always snubbed at the Oscars. They never forgave him for breaking the system. The fact he so good looking propelled him to stardom, something he always recognised and worked to perfection, so much so, he ended up becoming depressed for decades because he was forever playing Cary Grant that he was only ever Archibald Leech with his mother.

[Solitaire]

To Catch a Thief is one of my all time favourites

Soli - did you guess who was the Cat?

Yeah, that's what I meant to say, probably didn't make myself very clear - I'm going to blame pain meds on my poor writing (and behaviors! ) of late.

Charade

Alrighty, so Cary Grant is my favorite actor, and since I'm an old man I'm going to use the word 'actress' to name Audrey Hepburn as my favorite female movie star. Here's another movie that I've seen in pieces, in fact I'd say that I've seen the whole thing, or 95% of it anyway, but never the way God intended, from start to finish. I watched it a few days ago, and simply loved every second. What an all-star cast, for one thing! Knowing all the twists and turns didn't take away a single bit of pleasure in this full viewing. One of the best movies ever made.

The flirtations between Grant and Hepburn start immediately and are a joy to behold. Certainly, Grant was a handsome leading man. Audrey Hepburn, in my opinion, is one of the all time most beautiful women to have existed - not just her physicality, her range of emotions on screen, but her tender and intelligent personality just shines through. I'm honestly speechless, dumbstruck, at times, watching her acting, listening to her say her lines, evoking such powerful emotions.

There's plenty of laughs in this as well, and these two had exceptional comedic timing. There's quite a bit of sexual innuendo, and is presented in a classy way. The script, I think, keeps one guessing until near the end, with several major twists that the plot carries so well. I hate to say too much about the movie, in case someone wants to watch it. I don't want to give away any spoilers! This one is worth the effort to find and watch, trust me. There's enough drama, red herrings, interesting scenery and locations, heck everything is amazing, honestly. I'd love to hear other opinions!

[Rusty]

After a write up like that how can I not watch this? <Goes of to find it>.

[Sly Boots]

Soli, have you ever seen Mr Blandings Builds His Dream House? One of my favourite films, let alone Grant films. The Money Pit was based on it (although not as good).

[Achtung Englander]

The Super Mario Bros Movie

5/10

Could have been a lot better, it needed more humour and it was super violent. Its probably one of the most violent animations I have seen. It was non-stop face bashing.

[Alan]

To continue the Cary Grant appreciation we just watched Father Goose

I liked it but it’s not his best by any stretch. It’s one of his later movies (I think he’s around 60) and he plays an old curmudgeon that’s coerced into living alone on an island watching for Japanese planes during the war. Leslie Caron finds herself on said island because plot device and adventures ensue. Their relationship was fairly well handled except a questionable part towards the end. Despite the 30 year age gap is didn’t really feel icky (like when Fred Astaire was wooing her in Daddy Long Legs - ick!). Mostly.

It’s funny, suspenseful and has some good action sequences. So yeah, good film just not a classic.

[pappaduck]

Went to go see Rye Lane last night at the Peckham Plex which entirely unsurprisingly makes a cameo appearance. I'd heard good things but I wasn't ready for how funny it would be, some really nice cinematography as well.

Very much a love letter to that bit of South East London where I spent a lot of time in my 20's so it was fun to see the places I used to hang out made to look like a film. My brother pointed out that this must be what people from New York feel all the time when they go to the cinema.

8/10 extremely solid rom com.