Recently Watched Movies 2021

[nwhoopfan]

Reese Witherspoon and Natalie Portman made it through.

Yeah there's a bunch. Kirsten Dunst and ScarJo too.

Just seems like child stars used to frequently have a really hard time in life.

 

[HuskyHawk]

For some reason in my mind she's much younger than the others, but I guess the age difference isn't that big. There are a number of talented young actresses on the scene, some who have been acting for many years already. In addition to Grace, I expect Millie Bobby Brown, Kiernan Shipka and Thomasin McKenzie to be Hollywood mainstays for many years to come. It's surprising, but Brown is only 17. The other 2 are early 20s.


Side note, but it's encouraging that there are more and more child stars who seem to smoothly transition to adulthood in showbiz, without a bunch of off screen drama and notoriety. It seems like the opposite used to be more the rule than the exception (Lindsay Lohan, Amanda Bynes, etc.).

I liked Kiernan in Sabrina, but haven't seen her take on a real dramatic role. Thomasin McKenzie is fantastic in Last Night in Soho, which might be the best movie of the year. She also turned into a knockout somewhere along the way. MBB shows lots of promise as well.

It is nice to see that, so far, they haven't fallen into the traps that others have. I think Elle Fanning is another child star that turned out alright and has a nice career going. Her sister too. Maybe those others have made people a lot more cautious. I'd say Emma Watson turned out just fine, although her career kind of went nowhere.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

For some reason in my mind she's much younger than the others, but I guess the age difference isn't that big. There are a number of talented young actresses on the scene, some who have been acting for many years already. In addition to Grace, I expect Millie Bobby Brown, Kiernan Shipka and Thomasin McKenzie to be Hollywood mainstays for many years to come. It's surprising, but Brown is only 17. The other 2 are early 20s.


Side note, but it's encouraging that there are more and more child stars who seem to smoothly transition to adulthood in showbiz, without a bunch of off screen drama and notoriety. It seems like the opposite used to be more the rule than the exception (Lindsay Lohan, Amanda Bynes, etc.).

I agree, and today's child stars owe a lot to the child stars of decades ago that stood up for themselves and talked about how badly they were exploited. There are always going to be idiots, but I think today's child stars get a lot more support and have more protections than they used to.

 

[nwhoopfan]

I think Elle Fanning is another child star that turned out alright and has a nice career going. Her sister too.

Doh! I was thinking of the Fannings at some point and then forgot to mention them.

There must be some male child stars that have gone on to successful and relatively drama free careers, but not really come up with examples, other than Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

 

[storrsroars]

"Red Notice" on Netflix is very lightweight, but enjoyable enough. Mindless entertainment that you won't spend much (if any) time thinking about once it's over.

You can't think about it too much because it's simply all too ridiculous. But it was fun regardless.

Ryan Reynolds can't seem to do anything else than Ryan Reynolds. Which, in the right part, isn't a bad thing.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Ryan Reynolds can't seem to do anything else than Ryan Reynolds. Which, in the right part, isn't a bad thing.

I feel like at some point he must've tried stretching out a bit and actually doing something different, but yeah for a while now he's just been 100% the same shtick. Maybe the Deadpool movies is what really set it in stone?


Safe House was a non Ryan Reynolds character. Looking at IMDB he's had at least a few serious roles sprinkled in here and there. But holy cow whatever he's doing is in high demand, he currently has 7 announced projects/post production/pre production. Dude is gonna be busy for a long time.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Belfast 2021. Where to begin. Kenneth Branagh, ultimately, tells his own tale. His vision of what it was like as a boy in Belfast, a working class Protestant in a mostly Catholic neighborhood, when violence erupted in 1969. Branagh would be 9, like our lead, Buddy. The casting here is superb. Ciaran Hinds (himself a Belfast native born in 58) as the grandfather. You can sense how emotional this is for them. Catriona Balfe (from Outlander) is terrific as Buddy’s mom (and hot as usual). Jaime Dornan, another local, is very good as Buddy’s Pa. It opens with modern Belfast in color, clean, bright, safe, and reverts to black and white as we move to 1969. It’s wonderful filmmaking. Is it a bit nostalgic, clean, and safe despite the threats that appear? Yes, but we must suppose that’s how a 9 year old Kenneth Branagh remembered it. The best is recalled fondly and the worst is glossed over. And that feels right to me. It makes no judgments, no political point at all. Just a boy, showing you what he remembers of that time.

The music. Well @8893 would appreciate that Van Morrison is responsible and his own songs are 90% of the soundtrack, with a few noteworthy exceptions. It’s marvelous. Each song fits the moment flawlessly. Many I did not know. Some, like Carrickfergus, lend their emotional weight to critical points. I came away thinking I really must explore Van’s B side non-hit catalog, because these were some terrific songs.

What a pair of bookends. As a young man he gave us Henry V, showing Shakespeare in an entirely new light. I was mesmerized. Saw it at Trinity. Now this. Its quite personal and is more beautiful for it.

 

[storrsroars]

Belfast 2021. Where to begin. Kenneth Branagh, ultimately, tells his own tale. His vision of what it was like as a boy in Belfast, a working class Protestant in a mostly Catholic neighborhood, when violence erupted in 1969. Branagh would be 9, like our lead, Buddy. The casting here is superb. Ciaran Hinds (himself a Belfast native born in 58) as the grandfather. You can sense how emotional this is for them. Catriona Balfe (from Outlander) is terrific as Buddy’s mom (and hot as usual). Jaime Dornan, another local, is very good as Buddy’s Pa. It opens with modern Belfast in color, clean, bright, safe, and reverts to black and white as we move to 1969. It’s wonderful filmmaking. Is it a bit nostalgic, clean, and safe despite the threats that appear? Yes, but we must suppose that’s how a 9 year old Kenneth Branagh remembered it. The best is recalled fondly and the worst is glossed over. And that feels right to me. It makes no judgments, no political point at all. Just a boy, showing you what he remembers of that time.

The music. Well @8893 would appreciate that Van Morrison is responsible and his own songs are 90% of the soundtrack, with a few noteworthy exceptions. It’s marvelous. Each song fits the moment flawlessly. Many I did not know. Some, like Carrickfergus, lend their emotional weight to critical points. I came away thinking I really must explore Van’s B side non-hit catalog, because these were some terrific songs.

What a pair of bookends. As a young man he gave us Henry V, showing Shakespeare in an entirely new light. I was mesmerized. Saw it at Trinity. Now this. Its quite personal and is more beautiful for it.

Hadn't heard about this but have to see it. Branagh's done some paycheck blockbusters where he's chewed scenery, but there are few better actors/ directors when it comes to period piece smaller movies .

 

[HuskyHawk]

Hadn't heard about this but have to see it. Branagh's done some paycheck blockbusters where he's chewed scenery, but there are few better actors/ directors when it comes to period piece smaller movies .

Seems to me this is one he really wanted to make (he isn’t in it). It’s an art house release. On a lark we checked to see if we could rent it streaming and found we could. We had seen the previews a couple of times while at other movies.

A note on Carrickfergus, I found this, which explains some mistakes in modern interpretation of the song. It makes more sense and for us Scotch drinkers gives it a connection to Islay. It also makes more sense to the film. "Carrickfergus" - the truth about the lyrics to one of Ireland’s most haunting ballads

 

[CL82]

I agree, and today's child stars owe a lot to the child stars of decades ago that stood up for themselves and talked about how badly they were exploited. There are always going to be idiots, but I think today's child stars get a lot more support and have more protections than they used to.

Fwiw, Kid90 (I think that’s what it’s called) is a decent documentary. It is a vaguely nostalgic look at the girl who played punky Brewster and her crew from the 90s. It is tough being a child star. It seems like a weird mix of extreme privilege, and a weird duality between public and private personas.

 

[Dove]

"Four Christmases" (2008) - First time seeing it and was very surprised to like it. Very funny. Worth a watch. Many big stars in this cast.

 

[Palatine]

Gods and Monsters (1998). The story of the last days of film director James Whale, an open homosexual who lived out his days quietly in the mid century. The story is mildly interesting The performances are very good and nuanced especially Ian McKellen as Whale (no surprise), Brendan Fraser stretches here but keeps up.

I absolutely love the way this is shot. Obviously film . It's beautiful but not self-conscious. Simple, the camera is never in the way or shouts look me. It tells the story, builds or relives tension, let's the actors lead, it exactly how to bring a play to screen.

It's not a great movie. It's a good movie. Worth a couple of hours.

 

[dbmill]

Gods and Monsters (1998). The story of the last days of film director James Whale, an open homosexual who lived out his days quietly in the mid century. The story is mildly interesting The performances are very good and nuanced especially Ian McKellen as Whale (no surprise), Brendan Fraser stretches here but keeps up.

I absolutely love the way this is shot. Obviously film . It's beautiful but not self-conscious. Simple, the camera is never in the way or shouts look me. It tells the story, builds or relives tension, let's the actors lead, it exactly how to bring a play to screen.

It's not a great movie. It's a good movie. Worth a couple of hours.

For those who don't know, James Whale directed several early classic movies, especially of the horror variety, as well as the 1936 version of Show Boat. His horror classics include the following:

Frankenstein
The Old Dark House
Invisible Man
Bride of Frankenstein

 

[CL82]

Doctor Sleep
This is the sequel to The Shining. Danny Torrance survived The Overlook, but he was haunted both literally and figuratively by what happened there. I have kind of a love-hate thing going with Stephen King horror movies. (Not Shawshank or the Green Mile) I watch them, and enjoy them, but they’re kind of formulaic. This one was different. It referenced the original material respectfully and added more depth to “the Shining” world. I want to talk to you about Danny, about the boxes, about the shining girl that he meets, about the steam but this is one of those movies that slowly build to an explosive finish. It’s best to learn the pieces one at a time.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Army of the Dead. Netflix. Zack Snyder makes a zombie move that is a bit too long (like everything he does). It stars Dave Bautista, the former wrestler who is also Dax in Guardians of the Galaxy. Dude has to have used a lot of steroids over the years. The rest of the cast is not well known, but they do just fine. It's a different sort of Zombie movie, maybe one that has a slightly more realistic origin premise. Beyond that it has some wrinkles, in that it's also a crime job story of sorts. Overall this isn't terrible and Netflix made a prequel to it.

 

[HuskyHawk]

CBGB. 2013. How on earth did I miss this movie? Stumbled on it yesterday. My wife's family was in the record business so she just devours stuff like this. It's the mostly true story of Hilly Kristal and the establishment of his CBGB bar in the Bowery section of NYC. Despite his intentions and to some extent, incompetence, he managed to usher in the era of Punk Rock. Giving live to bands such as Blondie, The Ramones, Talking Heads, Patti Smith, Television and even The Police. Alan Rickman is the lead as Hilly, not too many notables in the cast (Malin Akerman is gorgeous as Debby Harry). This is just a lot of fun. There are historical inaccuracies, but who cares really? It's not a documentary. They work Punk magazine into the story as well, which gives it a Connecticut connection. It could be nostalgia, but I really enjoyed this.

For Boston folks, in the link above Hilly mentions how he coordinated with the Rathskeller in Boston in booking bands. The Rat was another legendary venue. I have to wonder whether places like this really still exist in our current world.

 

[storrsroars]

CBGB. 2013. Alan Rickman is the lead as Hilly, not too many notables in the cast (Malin Akerman is gorgeous as Debby Harry). This is just a lot of fun. There are historical inaccuracies, but who cares really?

Some of the actors cast then were nobodies but became somewhat somebodies (Rupert Grint, Johnny Galecki), but overlooking Taylor Hawkins as Iggy Pop in inexcusable, lol.

I saw it probably a year or two after its release. I know Rickman was alive when I saw it. It's light entertainment for music fans who remember that scene, and in that regard it's an enjoyable nostalgic trip. But I never sought it out again.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Some of the actors cast then were nobodies but became somewhat somebodies (Rupert Grint, Johnny Galecki), but overlooking Taylor Hawkins as Iggy Pop in inexcusable, lol.

I saw it probably a year or two after its release. I know Rickman was alive when I saw it. It's light entertainment for music fans who remember that scene, and in that regard it's an enjoyable nostalgic trip. But I never sought it out again.

Well Rupert was cast long after he was cast as Ron in Harry Potter. I suppose he's a name, but none of the Harry Potter kids have done much except Robert Pattinson and I guess Emma. I suppose Ashley Greene is moderately well known, and is certainly cute as heck as Hilly's daughter. I confess I have never found my way to the Foo Fighters so had to look up Taylor Hawkins.

Agree it's not really a re-watch candidate.

 

[ClifSpliffy]

Seems like most modern sci fi is dystopian, dark, grimy, dirty, you can hardly see what's happening sometimes. I liked that this movie was bright, w/ some beautiful cinematography. That house in the sky was amazing. I think mostly filmed in Iceland?

Anyway I really enjoyed the film, have watched it several times over the years.

'In Germany, one of the most important pioneers of science fiction was the Expressionist Fritz Lang. His 1927 film Metropolis was the most expensive film ever released up to that point. Set in the year 2026, it included elements such as an autonomous robot, a mad scientist, a dystopian society, and elaborate futuristic sets.'

weirdorama.

 

[dbmill]

'In Germany, one of the most important pioneers of science fiction was the Expressionist Fritz Lang. His 1927 film Metropolis was the most expensive film ever released up to that point. Set in the year 2026, it included elements such as an autonomous robot, a mad scientist, a dystopian society, and elaborate futuristic sets.'

weirdorama.

Never expected that Metropolis to get a mention in this thread. Fritz Lang's "Metropolis" goes way back with me. Aside from some Charlie Chaplin films, it was one of the first silent movies that I ever saw. I first saw it when I was a kid, I think in my teenage years, and it immediately struck a chord with me, and this movie stuck with me ever since. It is one of my favorite silent movies, and one of my favorite science fiction films as well.

 

[ClifSpliffy]

Never expected that Metropolis to get a mention in this thread. Fritz Lang's "Metropolis" goes way back with me. Aside from some Charlie Chaplin films, it was one of the first silent movies that I ever saw. I first saw it when I was a kid, I think in my teenage years, and it immediately struck a chord with me, and this movie stuck with me ever since. It is one of my favorite silent movies, and one of my favorite science fiction films as well.

back in grammar school, the shop steward of our local 'we hate piano lessons' union, scored a dvd with a double feature, 'the 5,000 fingers of dr t,' and 'metropolis.' i asked pops aboot the flix, and he said something like 'so u guys got a union, too? that mad piano teacher story was around in my time. and no, we are not ending ur piano lessons.' about metropolis, 'that's a good sci-fi story.' we figured out the silent part on our own. he was right, and it was my first silent film too. grand, scary, and dark. very german in hindsight, and very great still today. same questions, different props.
the nutcase piano teacher movie? well, it's odd that it was first presented (promo trailers and such) as some kind of 'wonderful, musical entertainment,' but it's not. it's a freak show. the guy sez stuff like 'when the plumber is done fixing the sink, i want him disintegrated, atom by atom,' and so on. he can hit a button, and a rack pops out of the wall with like 30 different cigars, all lit, when he offers a guest a smoke. then there's the piano with 500,000 keys requiring 400 child players. the whole thing was highly disturbing as a kid. not sure which one more.
kant, nietzsche, all them german guys yammerin on ain't got nuthin on thursday nite, 8 pm, when mr teacher visits to see if u practiced last week. lots of praying for ice storms then, i'll tell u what. at least that guy was a hoops fan.
did u ever have to take piano lessons for eight years? lol.
i mean, seriously? 'wonderful entertainment?'

'molten lead, chopping blocks, and hot boiling oil' for not practicing.
a complete freakshow horror movie.

 

[Jay-Bone]

The Last Duel (Netflix) - A Maffleck movie. Worth a watch, especially if you like historical period pieces. A little long and grueling, but entertaining nonetheless. Interesting to see the differences in vantage points and recollections. Women have come a long way, but still have a ways to go with this one ever unfortunate situation. Jodie Comer is so versatile, it didn't take me long to forget about her Killing Eve character, of which was so great seemed would be unforgettable.

 

[Waquoit]

Never expected that Metropolis to get a mention in this thread. Fritz Lang's "Metropolis" goes way back with me. Aside from some Charlie Chaplin films, it was one of the first silent movies that I ever saw. I first saw it when I was a kid, I think in my teenage years, and it immediately struck a chord with me, and this movie stuck with me ever since. It is one of my favorite silent movies, and one of my favorite science fiction films as well.

About a decade or so ago, they re-released Metropolis with added found footage. Real Art Ways sponsored a showing with a live-music accompaniment by the Alloy Orchestra. Cool movie with a live soundtrack made for a great night. The Alloy guys were spent at the end, no breaks.

 

[dbmill]

About a decade or so ago, they re-released Metropolis with added found footage. Real Art Ways sponsored a showing with a live-music accompaniment by the Alloy Orchestra. Cool movie with a live soundtrack made for a great night. The Alloy guys were spent at the end, no breaks.

The added footage came from a print that was found in a film archive in Argentina, if remember correctly. Before that, Metropolis was a great movie, but the plot line was a bit difficult to follow due to the missing footage. For me, the discovery of the added footage really did help clean up the story line. I did buy a DVD copy of Metropolis with the missing footage shortly after it was released for sale.

 

[Husky25]

I haven't really followed this thread as close as the 2019 or 2020 ones, but the postponement of the WFT/Philly game yesterday allowed me to not give a second thought about missing football for my second movie theatre movie of 2021. The first was The Croods II for my son's fifth birthday in January, when we rented out a full theatre for about 20 people.

Yesterday, I took my older son to Ghostbusters: Afterlife. I enjoyed it more than I thought I would going in, with multiple call backs to the first two Ghostbusters movies. It even got a little dusty at the very end.