Recently Watched Movies 2023

[HuskyHawk]

Finally found someone who agrees with me on this.

I don’t really like any of his stuff.

 

[ZooCougar]

I don’t really like any of his stuff.

I love many of the others and own them, but he’s very hit or miss.

 

[nwhoopfan]

We just need other people to make Wes Anderson's movies for him, then it should be fine.

 

[nwhoopfan]

 

[temery]

We just need other people to make Wes Anderson's movies for him, then it should be fine.

That's a great idea for a movie.

 

[ZooCougar]

We just need other people to make Wes Anderson's movies for him, then it should be fine.

Remember his American Express commercial? “Can I get a bayonet on this?”

That was better than the last two films.

He went into a rut like this after The Life Aquatic, so I am sure he will break out of it again.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds. This was good. A little bit too long, but that’s modern movies. The young guy who plays Snow is going to be a star. Rachel Zegler can sing. Peter Dinklage and Viola Davis have supporting roles. This starts 9 years after the war ended and the Capital started the Hunger Games. It shows how that came to be and how the games changed and why. Also gives insight into Coriolanus Snow, and just how and why he had such concerns about and interest in an appealing victor from District 12. Lots of singing and the songs have clear meaning.

 

[Atomicfear]

USA Up all night- found a few gems on VHS:

 

[Waquoit]

The Holdovers. Stars Paul Giamatti as a boarding school teacher stuck with the “holdovers” who have nowhere to go during the holidays.

I really liked this one. If Giamatti wins the Oscar it would be fine by me. He really knows how to use his face. Did I tell you I liked this one?

 

[HuskyHawk]

Ghosted. Ana DeArmas and Chris Evans, with several others and a fun cameo by Ryan Reynolds. It’s a rom-com with a mix of James Bond action and it’s quite enjoyable. Apple+.

 

[Palatine]

Going to see Napoleon tomorrow.

Almost time for a "Recently watched movies 2024."

 

[Palatine]

Napoleon (2023) For some reason, it seems impossible to make a good movie centered on Napoleon. This one is pretty bad. Scott, who's films are famous for their brilliant cinematography, gives us dull dark palette that that makes the entire film gloomy.

Phoenix, at 49 is simply too old to play Bonaparte, who died at 51 after six years of exile. We never believe he is an ambitious young man with an insatiable thirst for power especially since he sleepwalks through the lead.

The battles are gory but unemotional. The narrative makes Napoleon's life seem like a series of barely connected vignettes. It's too long. Comments heard walking out of the theater, "what a waste," "garbage," you get the idea. One star.

 

[ZooCougar]

Napoleon (2023) For some reason, it seems impossible to make a good movie centered on Napoleon. This one is pretty bad. Scott, who's films are famous for their brilliant cinematography, gives us dull dark palette that that makes the entire film gloomy.

Phoenix, at 49 is simply too old to play Bonaparte, who died at 51 after six years of exile. We never believe he is an ambitious young man with an insatiable thirst for power especially since he sleepwalks through the lead.

The battles are gory but unemotional. The narrative makes Napoleon's life seem like a series of barely connected vignettes. It's too long. Comments heard walking out of the theater, "what a waste," "garbage," you get the idea. One star.

The movie was basically like a Wikipedia of Napoleon’s life. A bunch of events but no narrative connecting it all. Ridley Scott is so over.

The best movie about Napoleon is Waterloo. Which is a real sleeper.

It was filmed in Ukraine during the ‘70s and it used like 20,000 extras from the Russian Army.

Rod Steiger is Napoleon and Christopher Plummer is Wellington.

You can watch it on YouTube for free and it’s a high quality version.

 

[Waquoit]

Phoenix, at 49 is simply too old to play Bonaparte,

Especially since one of his deals is that Josephine was much older than him.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Blue Beetle. This was pretty bad. It is set in some fake city like Miami. Could have been fun if it wasn’t so absurdly political. Like Che Guevara made a superhero movie. Stars the kid from Cobra Kai as the hero and Susan Sarandon as the bad guy. She looks 30 years younger than she is, so maybe some digital help there.

 

[nwhoopfan]

She looks 30 years younger than she is, so maybe some digital help there.

She looked more than 30 years younger when she played her own daughter in the Avatar sequel. All CGI of course.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Godzilla: Minus One. This was really very good. It has a lot of depth and some great cinematic nods to other films, notably Jaws. It starts at the end of WWII and our protagonist first encounters Godzilla on a small island. He survIves and returns to what’s left of Tokyo. You get a really interesting view of post war Japan and the struggles of the people there. He meets a young woman (the adorable Minami Hamabe) who is with a small baby. I won’t provide more spoilers but it explores the feelings of guilt and helplessness the Japanese experienced in WWII. Later there is some soul searching from a wise character about the failures of the empire. A critical scene near the end seems to symbolically represent the death of the empire and the beginning of a new Japan. That’s probably the largest overall message but there are many here. Japanese with English subtitles, which is actually easier for me since I usually get the closed caption glasses.

 

[Dove]

Violent Night (2022) - David Harbour does well playing a messed-up Santa who is taking a break on Christmas Eve. That break is at a home where 300M is targeted for a robbery. Beverly D'Angelo and John Leguizamo also star.

Entertaining.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Violent Night (2022) - David Harbour does well playing a messed-up Santa who is taking a break on Christmas Eve. That break is at a home where 300M is targeted for a robbery. Beverly D'Angelo and John Leguizamo also star.

Entertaining.

I thought this one was fun.

 

[Bomber36]

Watched this on Netflix over the weekend. Not great, but engaging enough and quite unsettling at times. The book, which I read a couple of years ago, was pretty good as well.

 

[Letsgohuskies11]

Violent Night (2022) - David Harbour does well playing a messed-up Santa who is taking a break on Christmas Eve. That break is at a home where 300M is targeted for a robbery. Beverly D'Angelo and John Leguizamo also star.

Entertaining.

Watched this on a plane in May. Was a lot of fun. Agree with the posts on Napoleon. My French revolution history is a blur at this point but I had a hard time understanding the context of the battles. They spent like 45 minutes on his relationship with his wife and then the other half in battles without really making sense of the why

 

[HuskyHawk]

She looked more than 30 years younger when she played her own daughter in the Avatar sequel. All CGI of course.

Wasn't that Sigourney Weaver?

 

[ZooCougar]

Godzilla: Minus One. This was really very good. It has a lot of depth and some great cinematic nods to other films, notably Jaws. It starts at the end of WWII and our protagonist first encounters Godzilla on a small island. He survIves and returns to what’s left of Tokyo. You get a really interesting view of post war Japan and the struggles of the people there. He meets a young woman (the adorable Minami Hamabe) who is with a small baby. I won’t provide more spoilers but it explores the feelings of guilt and helplessness the Japanese experienced in WWII. Later there is some soul searching from a wise character about the failures of the empire. A critical scene near the end seems to symbolically represent the death of the empire and the beginning of a new Japan. That’s probably the largest overall message but there are many here. Japanese with English subtitles, which is actually easier for me since I usually get the closed caption glasses.

This was VERY good. The less you know before you see the movie the better.

 

[HuskyHawk]

This was VERY good. The less you know before you see the movie the better.

Saw Killers of the Flower Moon a few days ago. This is quite a bit better than that and it will probably get a best picture nomination.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Wasn't that Sigourney Weaver?

Yep. Got a bit mixed up on my actresses.