Recently Watched Movies 2023

[NEforceUConn]

Was in a Clint Eastwood kind of mode. Heartbreak Ridge is kind of watchable, more Eastwood dialogue than usual.

All in all it’s OK. Now I’m looking forward to Gran Torino, hoping I have 3 glasses of wine remaining.

Ok thought Gran Torino free, but no.
Switching to Black Hawk Down.

 

[storrsroars]

Air (Prime). I enjoyed the story. Thought Damon was solid as lead, although he bears zero resemblance to Sonny Vaccaro (except for his gut). Bateman was solid as the marketing guy. Affleck was kinda ridiculous as Phil Knight, but Knight was weird. I surprisingly didn't like Viola Davis as Mike's mom because it seemed like acting, not natural. Missed Jay Mohr on first watch as he's become fat (he's only in for a minute as part of the Adidas team). The phone calls between Damon and Mike's agent get pretty funny. All in all a good watch.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Air. This was fun. Just a nice story, enjoyable for the whole family. Agree Damon and Bateman were good. Don’t know about Afflect bc Phil is weird. I thoight Viola Davis was good, but I don’t know much about Mike’s mom. The guy playing the agent was great. It’s an interesting look at a moment and decision that utterly changed the athletic shoe industry. A transformational point in time.

 

[Palatine]

The natural follow up Moneyball. I've been in the mood lately. Brad Pitt is an excellent Billey Beane. I like the story here, including his back history as a player, his family and daughter, and the weird obsession he has with not watching the games. But the main story is how he and Pete Berg changed the game. I think this is closer to reality than Draft Day, even if it embellishes here and there. After all, this happened. The As did make these trades and fire their head scout. The old guys sitting around talking about tools and using absurd language to describe players feels 100% spot on to me. We've learned since that what those guys saw was useful but incomplete, just like statistical analysis is useful but incomplete. Have to blend the two. It's been interesting that every team now does that, and so Billy can't get undervalued guys with the As now. The arbitrage opportunity is gone.

Side Note: In Oceans 11 and other Oceans movies, Brad Pitt is always eating in every scene. It's almost the same here. I don't know if that's a Brad thing or a Billy thing, or a thing Brad picked up playing Billy.

Moneyball was shot by Wally Pfister, who IMHO is one of if not, the best cinematographer in LA. He elevates the film beyond what when are used to seeing in sports movies and he received an Academy Award nomination for the effort.

This is real A list stuff, story, acting, direction, cinematography, editing, the whole thing.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Safe House. This is one of those "#4 movie in America" movies on Prime. From 2012. So I watched it. Ryan Reynolds is a CIA guy who does "housekeeping" at a safe house in South Africa. Has a gorgeous French girlfriend, because...Ryan Reynolds. Denzel is a former CIA guy gone Rogue. Brendan Gleeson is Reynold's boss. The job is boring until Denzel gets some illicit data on a memory card. A lot of guys try to kill him, he escapes to the U.S. Consulate in Cape Town. He is then transferred to Reynold's safe house, his first "guest". A lot happens after that, won't spoil it. Reviews were just so-so on this and I don't know why. It's not brilliant, but the deeper story behind what Denzel is doing is pretty interesting and believable. Worthwhile watch.

 

[NEforceUConn]

Air. This was fun. Just a nice story, enjoyable for the whole family. Agree Damon and Bateman were good. Don’t know about Afflect bc Phil is weird. I thoight Viola Davis was good, but I don’t know much about Mike’s mom. The guy playing the agent was great. It’s an interesting look at a moment and decision that utterly changed the athletic shoe industry. A transformational point in time.

Should have ended with track guy looking up at big screen with Breanna and Paige.

 

[Waquoit]

Moneyball ...

This is real A list stuff, story, acting, direction, cinematography, editing, the whole thing.

That was a surprisingly good movie to me. I went in wondering what the story would be. Brad Pitt was really good.

 

[NEforceUConn]

It’s a rush hour kind of evening. Tried Police Story, but subtitles said no.

Rush Hour 1 actually pretty good.

Now it’s time for 2.

Would have preferred Martin Lawrence over Chris Rock, but what do I know?

 

[nwhoopfan]

"A Perfect Getaway" is a bit cheesy, but entertaining enough, and has rewatch potential. Probably seen it 3 times now I think? Anyway its got beautiful Hawaiian scenery, Timothy Olyphant playing one of his classic characters, the vastly underrated IMO Steve Zahn, Milla Jovovich, Kiele Sanchez and Chris Hemsworth before anybody knew who he was. And Marley Shelton, who is kind of a chameleon.

A couple on a dream honeymoon in Hawaii, when it all goes wrong and suspicion overrules everything else as there is a murderous pair on the loose on the islands.

 

[nwhoopfan]

"Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre." Title is a bit of a mouthful. Been waiting a while to finally see it. Plenty entertaining. As a spy caper, nothing new really. Maybe a bit over long. But you have Jason Statham, Hugh Grant and Aubrey Plaza doing their thing and looking like they were having fun doing it. That alone makes it worth a watch. Having Josh Hartnett, Carey Elwes and Eddie Marsan along for the ride didn't hurt. I wasn't familiar with Bugzy Malone (seriously, that's what he goes by) but he had a good turn as well.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Ant Man and the Wasp Quantumania. Marvel haters are gonna hate. This is certainly the worst of the three films. Stars the usual crew of Rudd, Evangeline Lilly (not looking great), Michael Douglas and Michelle Pfeiffer. Newcomer as Scott Lang's daughter Cassie is Kathryn Newton. She's cute and I liked her in Supernatural. So Cassie is an "activist" (and living in SF there's a lot to be concerned about) but also smart it seems. She invented doohicky with help from Hank Pym. Everyone gets sucked into the quantum realm, which is really a subatomic universe. Is it possible those exist? Yeah, maybe. This is all CGI all the time. Nice looking though. I won't spoil the plot which goes back to Janet (Michelle Pfeiffer) being there for 30 years and what she didn't tell anyone. This is the modern equivalent of a Saturday Matinee B movie. Something like 20,000 leagues under the sea, Voyage to the bottom of the Sea, etc. It's not really trying to be anything else. It's perfectly ok if that's all you expect.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

White Men Can't Jump (Hulu 2023) - Really good remake of the Wesley Snipes/Woody Harrelson/Rosie Perez classic. The 2023 movie is more of a tribute to the feeling of the original rather than a true remake, which is absolutely the right way to go. There is no way to recapture the energy of the original, so this one goes in a slightly different direction while still staying true to the original's homage to Los Angeles street ball. It is hard not to compare the acting, and Sinqua Walls and Jack Harlow do not have the chemistry or energy of Snipes and Harrelson. I also feel like Snipes and Harrelson looked more like street ballers in the action sequences of the original than Walls and Harlow do.

I actually like the plot of the new one better. The second act of the original doesn't make sense, especially the key turning point in his relationship with his girlfriend when Billy Hoyle bets everything on a single dunk attempt. That is a stupid thing for Hoyle to do, and he is a hustler, so why is he making an emotional bet? The motivations of the characters in the 2023 version are better explained and more realistic, and the hustles are a little more layered in the new one, which makes them better.

 

[Waquoit]

I hope this one didn't have a Jeopardy scene.

 

[Hey Adrien!]

Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.

This movie really struck a chord with me. For the first 95% percent of the movie, I was watching a sweet, well directed/acted movie was incredibly accurate historical settings...I was immediately transported to 1970 and lived it even though I was born 16 years later.

The last 5% of the movie, I couldn't stop crying. It just ripped open my subconscious and opened synapses not necessarily related to the movie directly, but I'm certain the feeling/emotion of the movie will connect with anyone .

One of the better movies in recent memory.

 

[CL82]

Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.

This movie really struck a chord with me. For the first 95% percent of the movie, I was watching a sweet, well directed/acted movie was incredibly accurate historical settings...I was immediately transported to 1970 and lived it even though I was born 16 years later.

The last 5% of the movie, I couldn't stop crying. It just ripped open my subconscious and opened synapses not necessarily related to the movie directly, but I'm certain the feeling/emotion of the movie will connect with anyone .

One of the better movies in recent memory.

Well, that gives some context to the throwaway line in Deadpool.

 

[HuskyHawk]

The Pope's Exorcist. Stars Russell Crowe, who is surprisingly good as an Italian Priest, Father Amorth. The character was a real person. The story, well, some of it is based on Fr. Amorth's books, but the core exorcism in the movie is not. It's entirely fictionalized. The broader story of Fr. Amorth is quite good, the challenges within the church (the young American Cardinal is an absurd error however, none have existed) and it rings fairly true. That's where Crowe is best. You like this guy. Once we proceed to the final exorcism, there are some really interesting twists, and revelations that are also very good. The weak link is some of supernatural elements that occur during the exorcism itself. But there's a welcome human element that helps bring it back from that. Overall, quite good, could have been better with a few tweaks.

 

[nwhoopfan]

The Quiet Girl - Most of it is in Irish with English subtitles. Visually very beautiful. Not a ton of dialogue but very moving. Takes place in early 1980s in Ireland and is about a girl who is an outcast to both her own family and the world around her and goes to live with relatives she's doesn't really know in Waterford on a farm. @HuskyHawk might enjoy this. Playing in a lot of indie movie theatres.

It's out on dvd now. I enjoyed it. The title is appropriate, it's a quiet, subtle movie.

Spoiler

The ending though. Rough. You want to think she's going to be okay...but it's really hard to imagine she will be. Her home is a terrible place to be, all the more so after she had a couple months of seeing what a real family is like.

 

[HuskyBaggins]

At some point I thought I wanted to see "Babylon." Then I got it, and it sat around unwatched for several weeks. Probably the 3 hour run time scared me off. I knew for sure it was going to be self indulgent, with a lot of material that should've been edited out, and wasn't. No movie ever needs to be 3 hours long. I finally watched it. I was right. Pretty meh. A few good moments here and there. The performances were fine, especially Margot Robbie. But it just didn't seem to have much to say, which is bad for a very long movie. And as much as the Roaring 20s had a reputation as a wild time, I think they injected quite a bit of late 20th or early 21st century anachronisms into the mix, which was pretty dumb I thought. There was some pretty crazy and gross stuff going on, which added absolutely nothing. Huge cast, many of which had almost nothing to do, they were just there for a scene or two.

Yeah, pretty much feel the same. The first half to two thirds was good, albeit mostly pointless. The downturn in the back half was unnecessarily dark and depressing. Not sure what "message" they were trying to convey, but I didn't get it. And then, some of the plot points were completely implausible in reality.

 

[HuskyBaggins]

The Pope's Exorcist. Stars Russell Crowe, who is surprisingly good as an Italian Priest, Father Amorth. The character was a real person. The story, well, some of it is based on Fr. Amorth's books, but the core exorcism in the movie is not. It's entirely fictionalized. The broader story of Fr. Amorth is quite good, the challenges within the church (the young American Cardinal is an absurd error however, none have existed) and it rings fairly true. That's where Crowe is best. You like this guy. Once we proceed to the final exorcism, there are some really interesting twists, and revelations that are also very good. The weak link is some of supernatural elements that occur during the exorcism itself. But there's a welcome human element that helps bring it back from that. Overall, quite good, could have been better with a few tweaks.

Yeah, the 20 something year old cardinal was a bit silly.

 

[HuskyBaggins]

Was in a Clint Eastwood kind of mode. Heartbreak Ridge is kind of watchable, more Eastwood dialogue than usual.

All in all it’s OK. Now I’m looking forward to Gran Torino, hoping I have 3 glasses of wine remaining.

Ok thought Gran Torino free, but no.
Switching to Black Hawk Down.

Heartbreak Ridge is a classic. Probably seen that 25 times or more.

 

[HuskyBaggins]

Air. This was fun. Just a nice story, enjoyable for the whole family. Agree Damon and Bateman were good. Don’t know about Afflect bc Phil is weird. I thoight Viola Davis was good, but I don’t know much about Mike’s mom. The guy playing the agent was great. It’s an interesting look at a moment and decision that utterly changed the athletic shoe industry. A transformational point in time.

My only gripe is that it kinda ran out of steam towards the end. You know how it turns out, so there isn't any kind of payoff. I feel like they might have been better off tightening it up a bit and continuing into his actual playing career some where there might have been a payoff that you don't remember. Jordan and Nike you know. The intimate details of his playing career, especially early, not so much.

 

[nwhoopfan]

The new Dungeons and Dragons movie is a lot of fun. Chris Pine is a really versatile actor, he can pretty much do it all. Is anyone having more fun making movies these days than Hugh Grant? He's just hamming it up and looking like he's having a blast in everything I've seen him in.

 

[temery]

Yeah, the 20 something year old cardinal was a bit silly.

Watch either of the Borgia series. One is much better than the other. Can't remember which.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Three Thousand Years of Longing. Prime. Stars Tilda Swinton as Alithea and Idris Elba as the Djinn. Alithea is a professor of narratives, storytelling. The stories that defined civilization through the ages. She’s in Istanbul for a conference and finds a genie in a bottle. Most of the film is just the two of them, punctuated by stories of the Djinn’s past. She is a lonely soul and loves stories so devours this. He wants her to wish, but she’s very cautious. It’s a romance of sorts and has some nice story elements. Definitely a date movie, but a decent one.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Shazam 2. The first Shazam was an unexpected treat. Quite funny and Zach Levi did a great job as a kid thrust into the role of adult superhero. Shades of Big. One of the best DC movies. This one falls a bit flat. It has some funny moments, and it's a nice family movie in the PG13 sense. Plenty of silly CGI action and good villains in Helen Mirren and Lucy Liu. There's more coming of age high school awkwardness and angst here, plus the older foster sister Mary, being a 20s age person dealing with kids and missing her own age group. She's the only one without two actors for the role. Looked at that way, it works well enough.