Recently Watched Movies 2021

[Dove]

Human Capital (2021) - Liev Shreiber, Marisa Tomeii and Peter Skaarsgard star in this movie. Lots of time back-tracking to get to the moment of truth.

Overall, a good movie. Not a great movie.

 

[Dove]

Death Proof (2007) - I listened to the Joe Rogan podcast with Quentin Tarantino this week and this was his only movie that I’d never seen. I don’t even know why since I’m a fan of everything else. Frickin A did I enjoy it. First, the perspective of all 4 people in the head on crash. Then the Zoe Bell hood scene. she is a bad bad women. Music was great. Classic QT dialogue. Can’t believe it took me this long.

Wow. This movie vaulted Kurt Russell to the top of my favorite actor list.

We went to see Grindhouse when it came out. A great pair of movies presented in classic 70s fashion.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Anyone watch the Fear Street trilogy on Netflix? Wondering if its too sophomoric.

I also wondered if it is worth watching.

 

[Letsgohuskies11]

I also wondered if it is worth watching.

watched about half the first one. Its interesting, feel like its trying to be like a stranger things but more geared toward the high school population? I dont think it's something I necessarily feel like is a must watch but it def takes itself more serious than American Horror Story/Stories, which while having some legit scary first seasons has just become too comical and ridiculous at this point.

 

[HuskyHawk]

The Tomorrow War (2021). Amazon Prime. Despite the negative reviews here, I enjoyed this. Every movie involving time travel has inevitable time paradoxes. There's no point in dwelling on them, because Einstein couldn't really figure it out, so you shouldn't be expected to. Loki has problems too. This one does a good job with a few details like who is chosen to travel, specifically to avoid paradoxes. Ultimately this was a nice story. No deep meaning or political statement (aside from global warming at the end), just a story well told. It's borrows from Starship Troopers, War of the Worlds and Frequency (with time travel in place of a radio). All in all a good classic action/sci fi tale that is mostly about the people in the story.

 

[Magruber]

Human Capital (2021) - Liev Shreiber, Marisa Tomeii and Peter Skaarsgard star in this movie. Lots of time back-tracking to get to the moment of truth.

Overall, a good movie. Not a great movie.

I watched this yesterday and thought it was pretty good.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Watched a bunch lately.

"Jolt" is a new Amazon original. Totally over the top, ridiculous, and entertaining. Don't bother thinking about it, just roll with it. Doesn't take itself seriously. Very violent, but almost half of it is merely in the imagination of the main character.

"Black Widow." Waffled back and forth for a couple weeks before finally going to the theater to see it. I've got a nearby small indie theater, $7 matinee. I really enjoyed it. Some big action sequences. ScarJo and Florence Pugh shared a lot of screen time, and they were great together. Would've made more sense if this movie was made after Civil War and before Infinity War/End Game, but I'm glad we did eventually get a Black Widow stand alone.

"Our Friend" is streaming on Amazon. Based on a true story, about a married couple where the wife is diagnosed with cancer. Their long term, close friend moves in with them to help take care of the 2 kids and do some household chores, and stays for months, thru the bitter end. Told in non sequential order. Casey Affleck, Dakota Johnson and Jason Segel (he's not a one note actor after all) are all really good, as well as the oldest daughter.

"Suck." Had absolutely never heard of this before, stumbled onto it on Amazon. Loved it. Canadian road trip rock n' roll vampire comedy, not sure there's ever been one of those before. Small time band from Toronto, going nowhere, suddenly starts getting some buzz when their base player/back up vocalist becomes a vampire and gains off the charts magnetism. Some real rockers in cameos--Alice Cooper, Henry Rollins, Iggy Pop, Moby. You won't be able to take your eyes off Jessica Pare as the vampire. Movie has lots of rock history and literary references. I thought it was a lot of fun.

"Little Black Book." I've become more of a Brittany Murphy fan since her untimely death than I was before. This one was all about snooping, which usually drives me crazy, but I was okay with it in this case. Brit digs into her boyfriend's (Ron Livingston) past, arranging fake interviews w/ 3 of his exes. She's on the staff for a trashy daytime talk show. Holly Hunter plays her coworker/mentor who eggs her on, she's great. The exes were interesting. I enjoyed this one as well.

There have been more, but those are the more notable flicks.

 

[dbmill]

Cadillac Records (2008) - This film about the music recording industry definitely hit the musical sweet spot for me. It had been recommended to me by friends, but I never imagined it would be this good. This movie is based on the true story of Jewish immigrant businessman Leonard Chess who founded Chess Records in Chicago in 1950, and started out by recording various Black blues performers such as Muddy Waters, Little Walter, Jimmy Rogers, Willie Dixon, and Howlin’ Wolf. That’s quite a collection of talent right there. Later on, Chuck Berry and Etta James come into the Chess recording fold as well. The film basically covers the years at Chess during the 1950’s and 1960’s, and quite often looks at the relationships that form between Leonard Chess and the performers he is recording. I quite enjoyed this film, and thought that the filmmakers handled the race attitudes and relations of the time period quite well. One thing I never realized is just how many Muddy Waters songs I was familiar with, even though I don’t own any recordings of his music.

 

[Dove]

Minari (2020) - Steven Yeun stars in this movie about a Korean farmer wannabe who moves his family of four from California to Arkansas. He starts farming with the help of a local wahoo played excellently by Will Patton. Yeun's mother in law moves in to help with the kids. The actress wins the Oscar for her role.

Excellent ensemble cast.

Big downer of a movie...as there are few happy moments. Mother in law brings laughs.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Minari (2020) - Steven Yeun stars in this movie about a Korean farmer wannabe who moves his family of four from California to Arkansas. He starts farming with the help of a local wahoo played excellently by Will Patton. Yeun's mother in law moves in to help with the kids. The actress wins the Oscar for her role.

Excellent ensemble cast.

Big downer of a movie...as there are few happy moments. Mother in law brings laughs.

I just can't watch realistic unpleasant movies anymore. There is just too much of it in the real world. I'm fine watching Godzilla stomp all over Hong Kong, but not anything that feels real.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Monster Hunter (2020). I had eyeballed this for some time, having tried my hand a version of the video game. This stars Mila Jovovitch as Captain Artemis, an Army Ranger with lovely green eyes. Tony Jaa is entertaining as "Hunter". The plot involves an unstable wormhole that transports people to a world populated by monsters. Artemis and her squad are hit by a weird storm and transported. She eventually meets Jaa, who is a native that is stranded/trapped on a rock island. They fight then cooperate to get away. He doesn't speak English. They do eventually escape and meet with his people, who include Ron Perlman, "The Admiral". They all try to shut down the tower/device built by an ancient advanced civilization that is creating the worm holes. Artemis is sent home and is happy until realizing that one of the monsters is now on our world. I had low expectations and this exceeded them. It retained my interest. Despite a lack of conversational backstory on these characters, you do like Artemis and Hunter. It's good fun and doesn't take itself too seriously. PG-13, which was smart, as this is a classic Saturday matinee movie for all ages. The ending of course creates and obvious need for a sequel, and there is one in the works,

Side note, much as Jamie Lee Curtis became the scream queen in the 80s, Jovovitch seems to have staked out the role of video game character come to life. She wasn't Lara Croft (probably because she hasn't enhanced her anatomy) but would have been good. But she nailed this one and was Alice in all the Resident Evil films. She's done alright for a fashion model.

 

[nwhoopfan]

I'm on a bit of a Jessica Pare kick currently. Another I'd never heard of before that is on Amazon--"Standby." Romantic dramedy. Kind of a rough start, but it got better and I ended up enjoying it. The male lead is Brian Gleeson, son of Brendan and brother of Domhnall. Wasn't aware of him previously either. Both movies I've seen with Jessica recently she does some singing.

 

[Waquoit]

Roadrunner - this is the Anthony Bourdain documentary. It's perfectly fine as a film, no explosive revelations. But I came away with an idea about why he killed himself.

 

[Hey Adrien!]

Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar (2021) - Barb (Annie Mumolo) and Star (Kristen Wiig) are comfortable living together in their post-marital lives but after losing their jobs at a Jennifer Convertibles store in Soft Rock, NE, their lives are in a tailspin and stock is taken on where they are in their lives and what they want to do with them.

Despite their fears of ocean currents, travel diarrhea and other dangers unnamed that lurk ahead (cliffhanger), they throw caution to the wind and take a big trip together to Vista del Mar, FL.

A sage crab named Morgan Freemand, Reba McEntire as Trish, the benevolent ocean spirit, the lounge lizard Richard Cheese and Andy Garcia as Tommy Bahama are a few of the guest appearances.

I watched this Thursday coming home on a plane and it was exactly the type of movie that I needed during the doldrums of travel. Weird, funny, visually absurd...definitely watch if you are a fan of silly comedies. It's produced by Will Farrell and Adam McKay's company.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Gunpowder Milkshake (2021). Netflix. So, full disclosure, Karen Gillan is dream girl territory for me. Ever since she was Amy Pond on Dr. Who. This stars Ms. Gillan as Sam, along with Lena Headley as her mom, Scarlet, and features Carla Gugino, Michelle Yeow and Angela Bassett. If you think, hey those are some women who kick butt, then yes, that's the idea. So Scarlet is an assassin, part of a society of assassins. She is employed by The Firm, a group of all men who are criminals and control things. Stuff happens, she makes a mistake, she abandons Sam and vanishes. Fifteen years later and Sam has become an assassin as well, also employed by the Firm. As you might expect, she makes a tough but morally correct choice, and now people are after her. She is reunited with the ladies of "The Library", and it's basically lots of guys trying to kill these women, and not succeeding. Body count is straight out of John Wick. Is it good? No, not really. It's entertaining enough, and my first sentence still holds. If you want a team girl power version of John Wick, mixed with some humor, this will do the trick. Some good choreography and fight scenes, and Karen and Lena said it was hard work with trainers.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Six Minutes to Midnight (2020). Stars Eddie Izzard, Judi Dench. Jim Broadbent is the only other actor I recognize. Set in summer of 1939.
A private girl's school - the Augusta Victoria College in Bexhill-on-Sea England is run by Miss Rocholl (Judi Dench). All its teenage students are German, we learn that they are the offspring of prominent Nazis. Half-German English teacher Thomas Miller (Eddie Izzard) applies for a suddenly vacant position, he is hired to share the teaching duties. Intrigue and espionage follow as the British expect they will soon be at war with Germany, as do the Germans. The story is fiction, but the school is not. It's a pretty good movie, not great. I think it could have been much better, the character development is really not what it could be. A commercial failure for sure, it is still interesting and many may be surprised that this school existed.

A surviving school blazer badge shows a swastika alongside the Union Jack flag. As for the suggestion that the school was a front for a network of spies, Bexhill Museum’s curator Julian Porter said that “its role was more subtle and much more insidious”. The museum describes the college as “Nazis hiding in plain sight, helping establish Hitler’s hoped-for future relationship between the British Empire and the Third Reich.”

 

[nwhoopfan]

Seems like all the good movies I've been watching have been the tough to watch variety. "Fanny's Journey" (original title Le Voyage de Fanny) is a WWII movie based on a true story. Many French Jewish families sent their children to a part of the country that was controlled by Italy, who didn't persecute them. There were various organizations that hosted them, almost like orphanages. When Mussolini was overthrown, the Germans moved into that part of France. The children had to be moved, it wasn't safe for them anymore. This story follows a group of early teens and younger kids, trying to get to safety in Switzerland. The woman who was aiding them disappeared, so did an older boy. By default Fanny, who was only 12 or 13, became the leader. Well made film, very good performances throughout the cast. Heartbreaking story. There isn't much actual violence, unlike most war movies, but everything that happened was such a violation of their humanity.

 

[nwhoopfan]

"Wrath of Man," the latest Guy Ritchie film. It was good. It also seemed like quite a departure from his usual. Not saying his movies are style over substance, but they do tend to be really slick and flashy, with lots of quick cuts. And snappy, witty dialogue. And while they have plenty of action and violence, there's usually also a fair bit of humor mixed in. This movie had none of that. Gritty, fairly dark, no humor whatsoever. Also a rarity, not set in the UK. Jason Statham used to be a regular, but this is their first time working together since Revolver in 2005. It took a while to peel back multiple layers to find out what's really going on. It almost seemed like the movie didn't really start until about the halfway point (not that it was bad before then). Strong cast, most of which I believe have not been in a Ritchie film before.

 

[CL82]

Seems like all the good movies I've been watching have been the tough to watch variety. "Fanny's Journey" (original title Le Voyage de Fanny) is a WWII movie based on a true story. Many French Jewish families sent their children to a part of the country that was controlled by Italy, who didn't persecute them. There were various organizations that hosted them, almost like orphanages. When Mussolini was overthrown, the Germans moved into that part of France. The children had to be moved, it wasn't safe for them anymore. This story follows a group of early teens and younger kids, trying to get to safety in Switzerland. The woman who was aiding them disappeared, so did an older boy. By default Fanny, who was only 12 or 13, became the leader. Well made film, very good performances throughout the cast. Heartbreaking story. There isn't much actual violence, unlike most war movies, but everything that happened was such a violation of their humanity.

What is it on?

 

[Bomber36]

The Courier was an excellent Cold War movie. Stayed pretty close to the actual facts. As usual, Benedict Cumberbatch was a joy to watch. The man can flat out act. Rachel Brosnahan was also solid, although her character, which was based on a composite of several real life people, could have been developed more. She’s talented and I would have like to have seen more of her in the movie. Good turn from Jessie Buckley, who play the protagonists wife and also from Merab Ninidze who plays a patriotic Russian WW2 veteran who feels that the fate of the world is more important than his own. Worth the 5.99 I spent to watch it.

 

[nwhoopfan]

What is it on?

Streamed it on Hoopla. That and Kanopy have some real gems.

 

[Bomber36]

Nobody was a lot of fun to watch. Bloody good fun. I really enjoy Bob Odenkirk as an actor. The guy appeals to the Everyman in me. Another one worth every penny to rent.

 

[dbmill]

The Trip to Italy (2014) - Last year my wife and I watched “The Trip” (2010), and we enjoyed that movie enough that I wanted to check out “The Trip to Italy”, a sequel to the first Trip movie. Once again, this film is a sort of a mockumentary directed by Michael Winterbottom, and starring Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon as some sort of fictionalized versions of themselves. In the original film, the Coogan/Brydon duo travel the English countryside on a week long restaurant tour, encountering beautiful scenery and some wonder food preparation and presentation. In the sequel, the week long restaurant tour takes place in Italy. As in the original film, in addition to the travelogue and food, this movie contains much interesting, clever and witty conversations chiefly involving Coogan and/or Brydon. As in the orginal film, there is once again a dueling series of vocal impressions of other actors. With this film taking place in Italy, it was hardly a surprise when conversations and vocal impressions turned to actors associated with The Godfather movies. As in the first film, I quite enjoyed the humorous interplay between Coogan and Brydon, and I was quite pleased to see my wife have a constant smile on her face during this film. Safe to say, if you enjoyed the original film, it is quite likely that you will find “The Trip to Italy” enjoyable as well.

As with the original Trip movie, this was originally a multipart BBC television series that was edited into a film. Winterbottom, Coogan, and Brydon made a couple more of these Trip movies, involving food tours of Spain and Greece after this one. I suspect at some point I will be checking out these films as well.

 

[Kaizen]

Watch "Jungle Cruise" last month. I think this is the best entertaining movie I have watched this year. Combined the good adventure and jungle funs in one movie.

 

[Bomber36]

Watch "Jungle Cruise" last month. I think this is the best entertaining movie I have watched this year. Combined the good adventure and jungle funs in one movie.

That’s on my list…looks like the light hearted fun we could all use. And crap, who doesn’t love The Rock…the dude is hilarious.

.