List the films you've seen at the cinema: 2019

[RubyToogood]

Highly recommend the book - I'd lend you it if only I had a hard copy instead of a Kindle version! It's hilarious and a really good insight into how toxic (I hate that word but can't think of a better one in this context!) friendships work.

The impression I got was that

Spoiler

in the book Tyler deliberately sets Laura up to sleep with Marty in order to sabotage her engagement whereas in the film this isn't really spelled out and so it falls a bit flat.

In short I thought it was probably a case of the book being better than the film, without actually ever having read the book. I will try and get it.
E2A it does have some good outfits though.

 

[Part 2]

Anyone seen Holiday?....I didn't see it at the pictures but I know it's recently been on in Manchester so might be on release although it's a 2018 film.

I'd heard there was a shocking scene in it but hadn't thought beyond that what it might be.

Spoiler

It's a brutal rape

A very good film about the dull lives of small time gangsters, on holiday in Turkey.

 

[gosub]

Apocalypse Now! Final Edit : enjoyed it

 

[Wilf]

Current war. Misses out Swan & Armstrong side of things (understandable for narrative) but good film, well done. And one that adds to the public narrative of how we got where we are

Must admit I didn't like it, felt really flat throughout and I didn't really care about any of the characters. And that was before I remembered it was a Weinstein production (from which he was later written out).

 

[Wilf]

Apocalypse Now! Final Edit : enjoyed it

We were booked in to watch that and I was really looking forward to it - would have been the first time I'd seen it on the big screen, maybe the first time all the way through also. Trouble is I have neck/back problems and the seats we booked were at the outer end of a row. Would have been too much to sit for 4 hours.

The point of this heartwarming tale is that we turned up at the cinema and because we've got a monthly card for the ugc, we replaced Apocalypse Now with Blinded by the Light - probably the biggest contrast in cinema history. It was actually quite good, though it got dangerously close to becoming a sentimental, song and dance film in places. Same feel as Pride.

Saw Once Upon a Time in Hollywood last night. Certainly a 4/5. Mixes a storyline about a declining moviestar and his stuntman with real events from the late 70s. There's a twist but that would be very spoilery.

 

[Mrs Miggins]

Is it a good twist Wilf ?

 

[Wilf]

Is it a good twist Wilf ?

Yes, it's unexpected, but something that you also want to happen. It's actually quite funny as well. If I even allude to it, you might get what I'm on about, so I won't. Realise that's not very helpful but it is a good film.

 

[Mrs Miggins]

Yes, it's unexpected, but something that you also want to happen. It's actually quite funny as well. If I even allude to it, you might get what I'm on about, so I won't. Realise that's not very helpful but it is a good film.

That's helpful enough! It's one of the few films I'm interested in at the moment and just want to make sure it's not going to be rubbish

 

[Sue]

Saw Hail Satan?, a documentary about Satanists in the US. Except it's about way more than that. Very funny -- go and see it for troiling on a grand scale.

Eta And I defy anyone not to come out of it more Satanist than not.

 

[marty21]

Haven't been to the cinema in ages , fancied sitting in air con this afternoon #scorchio so went to see Angel is Fallen , totally stupid 3rd film in the Fallen franchise. Lots of bombs, gun-play, fighting and shenanigans. Enjoyed it , and enjoyed the air con too.

 

[Sue]

Almodovar's latest, Pain and Glory. Low key reflection on the past. Antonio Banderas is excellent. Also liked the twist at the very end.

 

[Orang Utan]

Bait
Extraordinary no-budget black and white Cornish drama about two brothers struggling to adapt to the gentrification of their fishing village. Filmed in a scuffed-up 16mm, with the sound and dialogue synced in post-production, according to director Mark Jenkin's Silent Landscape Dancing Grain 13 manifesto, it has to potential to seem pretentious and pointlessly constrained, but it works brilliantly - the images are remarkable and haunting and the weird non-diagetic sound and dialogue, along with the non-linear narrative and editing all contrive to make an unforgettable film. Can't wait to see what Jenkin does next.
It also has an erstwhile Urbanite in a fairly large role, and they smash it. Such a strange thrill to see them on a massive screen!
Jenkin's manifesto is here, in case anyone is interested:

5 bleddy emmits out of 5

 

[Orang Utan]

The Souvenir
I wanted to hate this. I've been steering clear of Joanna Hogg's films as I've perceived her to be one of those dreary Posh People's Problems film-makers like Stephen Poliakoff. She kind of is, but she acknowledges and almost satirises this in this film about a young rich Knightsbridge resident embarking upon both a film-making career and a dangerous relationship with a mysterious and arrogant fellow toff. I didn't think I'd identify with or be interested in such characters but to Hogg's credit, I did and found it moving and engaging throughout. Will have to look at her other films now.
3 monogrammed suitcases out of 5

 

[Nanker Phelge]

Inna De Yard

A lovely film that follows the recording of an acoustic reggae album which sees the old guard pull together with the youth and passing the baton.

It's sweet and funny and sad in equal measures. Each of these artists have their own poignant tale of survival, their music and their culture.

It's worth watching just to see inside Ken Boothe's bedroom.

The tunes are obviously great.

 

[blossie33]

Going to see it today

 

[Sue]

The Souvenir
I wanted to hate this. I've been steering clear of Joanna Hogg's films as I've perceived her to be one of those dreary Posh People's Problems film-makers like Stephen Poliakoff. She kind of is, but she acknowledges and almost satirises this in this film about a young rich Knightsbridge resident embarking upon both a film-making career and a dangerous relationship with a mysterious and arrogant fellow toff. I didn't think I'd identify with or be interested in such characters but to Hogg's credit, I did and found it moving and engaging throughout. Will have to look at her other films now.
3 monogrammed suitcases out of 5

Likewise. Went to see it purely because I was waiting to see a later film and I had a free ticket.

Found it quite annoying in some ways but the acting was very good.

 

[Sue]

Transit. Based on a 1940's novel by a German anti-fascist, updates the story of people fleeing the Occupation and trying to escaps France. Thought the (slightly unusual) update worked really well. Catch this if you can.

 

[Gromit]

Saw Hail Satan?, a documentary about Satanists in the US. Except it's about way more than that. Very funny -- go and see it for troiling on a grand scale.

Eta And I defy anyone not to come out of it more Satanist than not.

Thanks for this recommendation.

They had me at testicles on the gravestone.

My support just grew and grew from there.

 

[DexterTCN]

It: Chapter II

Very good sequel to 2017's first part which turned out to be a massive hit. It changes the ending of the book, cuts out more stuff than the first one, adds in some stuff, fleetingly touches some important stuff from the book in background nods by way of apology for not including them. Doesn't mention...it.

I didn't find it scary but it's hard to find good scares and I'm an It expert. What it is is bloody funny at times, perfectly reflecting The Losers.

McAvoy isn't allowed to steal the whole thing, Hader is excellent.

 

[Orang Utan]

Holiday.
I was intrigued to see this as the director, Isabella Elkof, co-wrote Border, which is one of the most original films I've seen in years. Border was extremely disturbing and provocative, but not nearly as much as this tale of a young woman, Sascha, involved with a deeply odious Danish criminal gang family on holiday/business in Bodrum. The whole film is suffused with unease and dread and the depravity that ensues is one of the hardest things I have ever had to watch. I found myself looking away or putting my hand in front of my eyes in one particular scene. There was one walkout in the showing I saw, so be warned. The culmination of the film's events do not conform to what we would usually expect from the kinds of films that it has been compared to (Irreversible is one of them) and by the end we're wrongfooted by Sascha's actions and taken to a different place than we expected. Not a film I ever have a desire to see again but Elkof is one to watch. 3 hideous but expensive emerald earrings out of 5

 

[Nanker Phelge]

It Chapter II; Shit chapter too.

 

[Orang Utan]

It Chapter II; Shit chapter too.

I watched the first part last night to see if it was worth bothering with part two. It's not. i don't get bored by films easily but this was fucking boring. way too long. and part two is way longer

 

[Nanker Phelge]

I watched the first part last night to see if it was worth bothering with part two. It's not. i don't get bored by films easily but this was fucking boring. way too long. and part two is way longer

I saw pt 1 in cinema and enjoyed it (apart from the end).

Pt 2 is just weak, long and daft.

 

[Wilf]

I watched the first part last night to see if it was worth bothering with part two. It's not. i don't get bored by films easily but this was fucking boring. way too long. and part two is way longer

Yep, thought it was dreadful.

Spoiler: because...

nothing wrong with long films, I love them. But this was just poor pacing and way too much rehashing scenes from the first film. Also, don't know if this is just a case of using what was in the book, but the clown got worse and worse throughout the film. The point was supposed to be the contradiction of a nominally child friendly but evil figure. Instead it became the cliché of large stomping spider. Weak stuff.

 

[Orang Utan]

Transit - a weird little film that I'm not sure I quite understood as I was very very sleepy and nodded off a couple of times. It seems to be set in modern-day Paris and Marseille, but the plot is a WW2 story about people trying to flee the encroaching Nazi occupiers. The characters seem to be dressed from the 40s and no one uses mobile phones or modern transport, yet the cops and other elements are definitely set in the real world. A cynic could interpret this as a cheap move to limit the film's budget, but perhaps this is done for artistic reasons. I have no idea what they might be though. I left the cinema confused, feeling like I had failed a test. A curate's egg.

 

[Orang Utan]

Hail Satan?
Hilarious documentary on The Satanic Temple, doing some excellent work trolling the American religious right with publicity stunts like applying for statues of Baphomet to be erected outside city halls, alongside Ten Commandments slabs (that incidentally were only installed in the 50s to promote the Charlton Heston movie). Behind the fun and games and dressing up are some serious-minded people with valid criticisms of the encroaching power of the religious right in a supposed secular state, making a solid case for the right to self-expression and religious expression without trampling on other people's rights. They've convinced me. Hail Satanists! (though they need better wardrobes and music - why do they all have to dress in black?)

 

[Wilf]

A failed anarchist writes:

Don't know how to say this, but I'll come straight out with it. I saw Downton Abbey last night. It was an explicit deal with partner, she'd come with me to watch something or other and I paid the price last night. Oh boy did I.

The nearest I can come to a review is that it works well, as the series does in terms of set design and visuals. Lots of one liners from Maggie Smith. But the fucking plot... Astonishingly inept pro-monarchist drivel where a former republican ends up doing something, well, let's say you wouldn't expect them to do. Every twee little story line ends up resolved happily, literally, every one. All the little people in the village and below stairs show their love and gratitude to their betters and Downton Abbey itself 'abides'. If it was possible to put the politics aside, it was still be a complete pile of cack. Astonishingly, most of the reviews seem to be quite positive, aside from noting that it was 'undemanding'.

 

[Sue]

Oh Wilf . This is why I (generally) go to the cinema on my own.

ETA What did your partner think?

 

[Wilf]

Oh Wilf . This is why I (generally) go to the cinema on my own.

ETA What did your partner think?

Thankfully, she wasn't impressed. In fact she agreed that it was 'inept pro-monarchist drivel'.

One of the servants, literally, fainted with excitement when he found he was going to serve the King his tea. As would I at the thought of taking a lumphammer to Julian Fellowes.

 

[Sue]

Thankfully, she wasn't impressed. In fact she agreed that it was 'inept pro-monarchist drivel'.

One of the servants, literally, fainted with excitement when he found he was going to serve the King his tea. As would I at the thought of taking a lumphammer to Julian Fellowes.

Well at least you can remind her of this the next time she wants you to go and see something godawful.