Films you have seen at the cinema 2023
- Thread starter T & P
- Start date
I've seen quite a lot of stuff recently but special mentions to:
The Land Within. 10 years after the Kosovan War, a mass grave is excavated and stirs up long buried secrets. Part of Raindance, a very good first feature. (And in the q&a, someone asked whether a specific shot was an hommage to Tarkovsky's Mirror which won full q&a pretentiousness points.
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And two early Michael Powell (before Pressburger) films -- Red Ensign and The Night of the Party. Both from 1934 and interesting from a historical pov.
The Land Within. 10 years after the Kosovan War, a mass grave is excavated and stirs up long buried secrets. Part of Raindance, a very good first feature. (And in the q&a, someone asked whether a specific shot was an hommage to Tarkovsky's Mirror which won full q&a pretentiousness points.
)And two early Michael Powell (before Pressburger) films -- Red Ensign and The Night of the Party. Both from 1934 and interesting from a historical pov.
Jeff Robinson
Marxist-Lentilist: Jackboots and Jackfruit
The Killer - a b movie thriller about a hitman directed by David Fincher. As you’d expect, it’s stylish, has some good action sequences and Michael Fassbender is entertaining to watch, if only for his impressive yoga skills (nice warrior 3!). Ultimately though this is a cliched, somewhat repetitive movie with no real plot, no character development and nothing very interesting to say about anything.
How to have Sex - an outstanding coming of age drama about (lack of) sexual consent. A genuinely heartbreaking and mostly hellish story about a group of teenage girls partying in Greece punctuated with occasional moments of joy and connection. Pretty flawless as a piece of film making really and should also be mandatory for all teenagers at school to highlight the importance of consent and respect in sexual interactions - and how to look out for your friends. A contender, alongside Past Lives, for film of the year.
How to have Sex - an outstanding coming of age drama about (lack of) sexual consent. A genuinely heartbreaking and mostly hellish story about a group of teenage girls partying in Greece punctuated with occasional moments of joy and connection. Pretty flawless as a piece of film making really and should also be mandatory for all teenagers at school to highlight the importance of consent and respect in sexual interactions - and how to look out for your friends. A contender, alongside Past Lives, for film of the year.
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
We had one at the Shadow Of The Vampire Q&A from a student film photographer about lenses. The director just responded with a tangential anecdote that entertained the whole audience instead of humouring the lone student, which I thought was a good move.I've seen quite a lot of stuff recently but special mentions to:
The Land Within. 10 years after the Kosovan War, a mass grave is excavated and stirs up long buried secrets. Part of Raindance, a very good first feature. (And in the q&a, someone asked whether a specific shot was an hommage to Tarkovsky's Mirror which won full q&a pretentiousness points.
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
#LIFF2023
Film 14: The Train
Nail-biting thriller with Burt Lancaster as a French resistance fighter attempting to divert a train full of looted art being sent from Paris to Berlin before the imminent defeat of the Nazis. The trainiest of the train movies so far- should please train nerds everywhere - lots of steam, levers and point-work
4 trainspotters’ wet dreams out of 5
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
#LIFF2023
Film 15: Knit’s Island
Doc filmed entirely in a virtual survivalist environment.I love video games but have never got the appeal of watching other people play them, or indeed playing with strangers online, so this is not the film for me. Tedious, but made me appreciate IRL, which is way more fun
2 uncanny valleys out of 5
DaveCinzano
WATCH OUT, GEORGE, HE'S GOT A SCREWDRIVER!
Says middle aged man with nigh-on 21 consecutive years of tarting about on a website populated mainly by people who never meet each other
krtek a houby
Anger is Hi-NRG
Such a great film. Love Burt and Scofield.
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
corresponding is different to actually speaking and listening, and we’re not playing boring video games!Says middle aged man with nigh-on 21 consecutive years of tarting about on a website populated mainly by people who never meet each other
And a lot of us do meet each other!
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
#LIFF2023
Film 16: Anatomy Of A Fall
Worthy Palm D’Or Winner about the death of a man and the subsequent murder trial of his widow. It feels almost intrusive that we’re allowed to see these very raw emotions within a family dynamic, but that itself underlies its authenticity.
Excellent acting, particularly from the child and the very good dog (at least I hope it was acting)
4 excruciating arguments out of 5
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
#LIFF2023
Film 17: Inshallah A Boy
Righteous Jordanian film about a widow subjected to patriarchal injustice. Top marks to the lead actress.
3 pathetic greedy brothers-in-law out of 5
I was pondering going to see that with my free ticket but for various reasons I opted for The Killer instead. I’ve seen the trailer for AOAF but it hasn’t really excited me.
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
#LIFF2023
Film 19: Monster
There’s no director more compassionate than Kore-eda. Ingeniously constructed, it’s Rashomon-style telling of the story from different perspectives, keeps us challenging our own assumptions and prejudices and leaves us reeling in sadness and love for humanity, whilst still remaining enigmatic. Desperate to see this again soon. One for spirited discussion after seeing the film.
Beautiful melancholy score by Ryuchi Sakamoto - his last.
5 tragic misunderstandings out of 5
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
#LIFF2023
Film 20: Poor Things
BELIEVE THE HYPE! Everything about it is stunning.
Not heard that much laughter in a cinema for a long long time. Hugely entertaining
5 furious jumps out of 5
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
#LIFF2023
Film 20: Snowpiercer
Great to see this on the big screen rather than shitty Netflix. Ludicrous yet propulsive plot but so much fun.
4 protein blocks out of 5
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
#LIFF2023
Film 21: I Used To Be Funny
Rising star Rachel Sennott stars as a stand-up comedian recovering from a traumatic event that is told gradually in flashback. Promising debut but it didn’t engage me despite Sennott’s clear talent.
3 lame punchlines out of 5
Looking forward to seeing this on Sat.
littlebabyjesus
one of Maxwell's demons
How to Have Sex
Three teenage girls on a bender in Greece as they wait for their GCSE results. You can guess where it's going. I won't say, but it's subtle and understated in how it gets there as you follow their non-stop partying. It reveals the night's happenings in a series of parallel scenes, and you share the slow realisation what exactly is going on rather than having it slegdehammered into you. The relationships between the girls themselves are brilliantly done and there are some big themes in what on the surface appears to be the epitome of shallow revelry. Why are we friends with who we're friends with anyway?
A directorial debut by Molly Manning Walker, and mightily impressive. One to mull over.
Three teenage girls on a bender in Greece as they wait for their GCSE results. You can guess where it's going. I won't say, but it's subtle and understated in how it gets there as you follow their non-stop partying. It reveals the night's happenings in a series of parallel scenes, and you share the slow realisation what exactly is going on rather than having it slegdehammered into you. The relationships between the girls themselves are brilliantly done and there are some big themes in what on the surface appears to be the epitome of shallow revelry. Why are we friends with who we're friends with anyway?
A directorial debut by Molly Manning Walker, and mightily impressive. One to mull over.
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
#LIFF2023
Film 23: Mutt
A day in the life of a young trans man as he encounters his ex, his younger half-sister and his dad. The acting is excellent and it’s good to see more films on this subject, but it’s let down by a tritely articulate Dawson’s Creek-style script. There is a good dog.
3 coke-hoovering cousins out of 5
belboid
Exasperated, not angry.
Have you seen Bottoms yet?
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
Nope
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
#LIFF2023
Film 25: The Settlers
Fragmented and uneven depiction of the colonial horrors of Chile’s early history. Can’t help think of The Nightingale, which did the same in Tasmania, but more effectively.
3 Black Knights out of 5
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
#LIFF2023
Film 27 (I can’t count): Pictures Of Ghosts
Charming love letter to the cinemas and city of Recife in Brazil from the director of Bacarau
4 Herb Alpert bangers out of 5
(Rise is one of my Desert Island Discs, so I’m biased)
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
#LIFF2023
Film 27: Pictures Of Ghosts
Charming love letter to the cinemas and city of Recife in Brazil from the director of Bacarau
4 Herb Alpert bangers out of 5
(Rise is one of my Desert Island Discs, so I’m biased)
Really enjoyed it. Was fucking wracking my brains the whole movie to try & remember the name of the track used at the beginning- So glad they have a scene which put me out of my misery.
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
I thought it was a version Sabres Of Paradise’ Wilmot at first
Indeliblelink
\......👁&👁......./
Me too.
Jeff Robinson
Marxist-Lentilist: Jackboots and Jackfruit
Dream Scenario - absolutely hilarious surreal dark comedy with Nicolas Cage staring as a forgettable academic struggling to get published. Nobody seems to notice him until one day he starts appearing in everyone’s dreams. Another movie disproving the cage-haters, his comedic performance in this is impeccable. The final third didn’t cut it for me, but this is worth it for the laughs alone, the entire audience in my screening was in hysterics.
Orang Utan
Psychick Worrier Ov Geyoor
#LIFF2023
Film 29: Daaaaaali!
Quentin Dupieux’s films are alway curate’s eggs that promise more than they deliver, while remaining must-sees. At least they tend to be mercifully short. This is no exception. Multiple actors play Dali, continually frustrating a female journalist’s attempts to interview him. A sly dig at misogyny in the art world and beyond.
3 moustachioed egoists out of 5
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