🍿 Movies 🎬

Posted by: @slap-shot

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The Odyssey - just brilliant.  Saw it in Imax and am going to go again tomorrow.

It's not flawless - Tom Holland is average at best, Charlize Theron seemed stiff, and the ending?  But Anne Hathaway, Elliott Page, Damon, Jon Bernthal and yes even Robert Pattison were quite good.

There are several sequences where you are left stunned and/or in awe, the sound editing was absolutely perfect throughout, the production was as good as it gets.  2 or 3 moments where I wish there were subtitles but other than that I was floored.  

Truly a spectacular movie. 

Posted by: @the-rube

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Started the new season of Quarterback on Netflix. I don't have high hopes for this one, given the QBs involved. I will say, Baker Mayfield seems MUCH more mature than when he hit the NFL (and he's owned up to his past). I do like Flacco's vet takes on the young'ns in this series. 

Listening to 93X HAMS sports segment, I guess a lot of QBs, after seeing the series, don't want that kind of intrusiveness, and have declined to be on the show, which I totally get. I sure wouldn't want that. 

Still want to see a series like this on LBs for sure, maybe DLine and DBs. 

This season was okay....I think it has run its course. I've heard rumors that some QBs didn't want to participate, b/c "cameras everywhere"/privacy sort of thing, which I completely understand. I guess it's the same as the Hard Knocks series, but not having seen any of that latter series, I cannot truly comment. 

You'd think based upon the feedback that the creators/producers would adjust and find a compromise between the level of intrusion they want and the level of privacy the players want.  

Posted by: @slap-shot

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You'd think based upon the feedback that the creators/producers would adjust and find a compromise between the level of intrusion they want and the level of privacy the players want.  

I'd be fine with the cameras at my job (which it is) and when I go out and about, but I would not be comfortable with them filming my "family life" so to speak. No cameras in my apt/house/whatever.  

Searching:
After his teenage daughter goes missing, a desperate father tries to find clues on her laptop, with the help of a police detective.

Very bare bones movie, most of it is seen as a computer screen (text, videos, etc). If one were talented enough, one could simply make this a play, without losing any of the dynamics, IMO. There are some turns, some clues/foreshadowing sprinkled in. The ending is a solid one. 

One of the recurring themes is how social media affects everyone's life, and how they portray themselves. For example, people who said they sorta-kinda knew the missing girl (to the police and father), suddenly were her best friends in front of a news camera or in posts on social media. 

It's a good, but not great, watch. 

Chief Of Station:
After learning that the death of his wife was not an accident, a former CIA Station Chief is forced back into the espionage underworld, teaming up with an adversary to unravel a conspiracy that challenges everything he thought he knew.

Let's see here, um, cliche, cliche, super obvious foreshadowing, boring action sequence, cliche, more boring action, the obvious twist in the movie due to the super obvious foreshadowing, more boring action sequences, and in the end, another cliche.

Yep, that about sums it up. 

In The Land Of Saints And Sinners:
A disillusioned hitman comes out of retirement for one last job when an IRA bomber on the run from the law arrives in his sleepy Irish village.

Not your typical late-career Liam Neeson Movie. Yes, he does kick some ass, but it's more a drama movie than action movie. Think more "Michael Collins" (which had him AND Alan Rickman star, ZOMG) and less "Taken"-style. Kerry Condon was EXCELLENT, whose most known roles are probably the daughter of Mike Erhmantraut from "Breaking Bad" and Siobhan Suilleabhain from "The Banshees Of Insherin" (another phenomenal movie). 

She plays a feisty Provisional IRA (there is a difference from the Official IRA) member, and oh, she's one nasty b*, but as with many members of an organization, likes to keep civilians out of it...until they are needed for their purpose. Their own moral code, I suppose. 

Either way, this movie was a great watch, delves into The Troubles a bit more than what the main plot is about, and more truthful about the events (in general) in that era, although very subtle about it. Still a touchy subject in that country, for obvious reasons. 

Posted by: @the-rube

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In The Land Of Saints And Sinners:
A disillusioned hitman comes out of retirement for one last job when an IRA bomber on the run from the law arrives in his sleepy Irish village.

Netflix? 

EDIT - NM, it is.  Turns out I can do my own damn research.  😎 

The Last House:
A family of four is suddenly sealed inside their house with no way out and must work together to survive against both their dwindling resources and the mysterious, looming threat that is keeping them trapped.

A good mix of sci-fi, horror, and drama. The timeline accelerates quite rapidly, which surprised me a little at first, but makes sense in the end, given that it would have been a 3+ hour movie otherwise. 

The acting is superb, especially with the mental states of the family at each stage of the crisis. There was only one possible plot hole I found off the bat (there could be more, on a re-watch), BUT the writers had that covered, for the most part* (spoiler below). 

It was much better than I thought it would be, I had initially ignored the suggestion by the Netflix Algorithm (all hail the Netflix Algorithm! 😉 ) But caught one of those "Movies you should see this weekend" articles, and this was on it. 

Apparently, the "spoiler" feature isn't working? *shrug*

*

I’m really looking forward to ‘Petra - Beyond Belief’ coming to theaters on Aug. 28th…

Violent Night 2 coming out in Dec. 

Yep, I'm in for that. The first one is a modern Christmas classic. 

Young Washington… A movie about the early life of George Washington during the French and Indian War.

Had to laugh at one of the scenes and guy was preforming CPR… only 200 years before CPR was invented. 

Posted by: @gator

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Young Washington… A movie about the early life of George Washington during the French and Indian War.

Had to laugh at one of the scenes and guy was preforming CPR… only 200 years before CPR was invented. 

Speaking of bad movies...a co-worker and were talking about said style (is it on purpose, or by accident?). "Hobo With A Shotgun" was on purpose, and it's hilarious if one enjoys the "Death Proof"/"Bounty Killer"/"Rock Of Ages" sorta thing. The movies that are worse than "Road House" but that is what makes them awesome. 😉 NOT SAFE FOR WORK. It's a redband trailer, not greenband. 

@the-rube 

Road House is a bad movie?!?!?! It’s like Shawshank… when ever it’s on, regardless where… I’ll watch it!!!

Posted by: @gator

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@the-rube 

Road House is a bad movie?!?!?! It’s like Shawshank… when ever it’s on, regardless where… I’ll watch it!!!

Road House is a terrible movie. BUT, it falls under "so bad, it's good" similar to "Rock Of Ages." 😉 (Yes, I own both because of those reasons)

Recently watched a string of highly recommended and underrated films from the past several years and I concur that all are truly wonderful, although not necessarily for everyone.  

-Coherence (2013)

-Blue Ruin (2013)

-The Invitation (2015)

-Calibre (2018)

Quote: The Rube

Quote: gator

@the-rube 

Road House is a bad movie?!?!?! It’s like Shawshank… when ever it’s on, regardless where… I’ll watch it!!!

 

 

Road House is a terrible movie. BUT, it falls under "so bad, it's good" similar to "Rock Of Ages." 😉 (Yes, I own both because of those reasons)

 

I respectfully submit Twister into this category, it is one of most unintentionally funny movie ever made.

Quote: Greyeagle

Quote: The Rube

Quote: gator

@the-rube 

Road House is a bad movie?!?!?! It’s like Shawshank… when ever it’s on, regardless where… I’ll watch it!!!

 

 

Road House is a terrible movie. BUT, it falls under "so bad, it's good" similar to "Rock Of Ages." 😉 (Yes, I own both because of those reasons)

 

I respectfully submit Twister into this category, it is one of most unintentionally funny movie ever made.

Hey hey hey! That is the 2nd movie my wife and I saw together (Spy Hard was the 1st) and we still watch it once a year.  

I've seen several movies lately and wanted to give my thoughts.

Spiderman :  Brand New Day (in theaters).  Of the 4 Tom Holland movies this was my least favorite.  It wasn't a bad movie but it just wasn't as fun and lighthearted as the first 3.  I can rewatch the other 3. I have no interest in rewatching this one.

Spinal Tap 2 - The End Continues (HBO MAX) - the whole gang is back together as they have to play one last concert due to a contract. I think all the parties involved said there's no way they can top the first one so lets just send the band out with a warm good bye.  Had some funny moments and cameos.  Now that I've watched it once I don't foresee needing to watch it again.

Homefront (Amazon Prime streaming) - A former DEA agent moves his family to a quiet town, where he soon tangles with a local meth druglord.

Another Jason Statham plays a former (fill in the blank) but goes back to his roots to save his family movie.  Unlike others, I kind of liked this one, partly because of the casting.  James Franco, Winona Ryder, Kate Bosworth, Clancy Brown, Frank Grillo are all in it so it gives the movie a bit more credibility.  Sylvester Stallone co-wrote the movie.  

It deservedly didn't win any awards but I enjoyed it.

Normal (HBO MAX) - Centers on a temporary small-town sheriff who uncovers dark mysteries after a local bank robbery.

Bob Oedenkirk plays a fill in sheriff in the town of Normal, Minnesota.  There's a bank robbery and then the twists and turns happen.  I liked the story arc of this movie as it's very different from most. Contains the over the top comical violence also found in Nobody and Nobody 2.  I recommend

Agree 100% on Spinal Tap II. 

The bad news keeps coming:

https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/movies/2026/08/26/tim-curry-dead-rocky-horror-picture-show/91474037007/

There is a new movie coming out in November about John Madden the preview makes it look like a low budget 

Quote: gopher6

There is a new movie coming out in November about John Madden the preview makes it look like a low budget made movie

https://www.google.com/goto?url=CAEScAHrOzAVO54vLK8kLm2rCLEbABOtoQ7-5l0Nahxt2fo24tflkRdQeBjhSiWDWx2QdXCoPEONp_2xfLRaqaEaEdzRPIjOptJtWWat4zkibJXyYGLEkgB1Q98UnPx5zi3D4Wtp3hkbpwxvTBVb0-J2XqI

It does give off some "Miracle on Ice" (1981) vibes.

How they got Bale to play Davis initially surprised me, but he has a history of taking swings at goofy stuff here and there.

A funny comment/recommendation I agree with asks us not to think of it as Cage doing a Madden impression, but Madden doing a Cage impression. 

The casting of Cage after seeing the previews looks like either Cage bought the production rights and wouldn't let anyone else play the role, or Cage has naughty picks of the casting director. 

Unabomber (2026)
A Harvard student becomes the Unabomber after psychological experiments. Years later, an FBI agent's pursuit reveals how his past shaped his deadly campaign that killed 3 and injured 23 from 1978-1995.

Pretty good movie, I don't think it fully condemned him, due to various factors (mainly his mental state/experiences) but came far from excusing him. I think it's a common opinion that if it weren't for his brother/SIL, it's unsure if ever would have been caught. The counterpoint to that is that today's technology is much different than that time period, so who knows? 

Facing El Chapo (aka La Captura):
Follows two cops who in a routine stop pull over a stolen car only to come face to face with one of the most dangerous criminals in the world.

Caught a headline to a review that stated (paraphrased): It's a 91-minute anxiety attack disguised as a crime drama. That isn't far off. The acting by the cops is great, they really made you wonder if they could be trusted or not. Even the guy who plays El Chapo comes off as someone....well, he's making you an offer, can you trust THAT? 

Both movies are worth watching, mentally entertaining, rather than action-based, although the latter obviously has some shoot-out scenes, given the subject of the movie. Those scenes, however, play a distant second banana to the main crux of the movie. 

The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare:
The British military recruits a small group of highly skilled soldiers to strike against German forces behind enemy lines during World War II.

Loosely based on a true story, and for me it came off like an Inglourious Basterds, Guy Ritchie-style. Very entertaining and off-the-cuff action and humor. I did find it hilarious that Til Schweiger plays a higher-ranking German soldier, where as in the Basterds, he played the ruthless Basterd Hugo Stiglitz. It was a nice nod to Tarantino, IMO.

Definitely worth watching. 

Alan Ritchson and Henry Cavill work great off each other in that. 

Waiting For The Barbarians:
At an isolated frontier outpost, a colonial magistrate suffers a crisis of conscience when an army colonel arrives looking to interrogate the locals about an impending uprising, using cruel tactics that horrify the magistrate.

If you want a slow, tedious, plodding movie, have I got the recommendation for you. Imagine a visual representation of the Econ Teacher in Ferris Bueller's Day Off telling the story. The lesson is very good, the delivering of said lesson is horrendous. 

I would not recommend unless you have a morbid curiosity of anything boring. 

Ad Astra:

An astronaut embarks on a space mission to investigate a threat to the universe and uncover the truth about his father who disappeared thirty years ago.

Slow-paced, but very cerebral. Pitt's character is very much detached at the beginning, but as the story moves along, is calmly looking for his sense of self, he derails a bit, and then finds closure. The truth about his father (Tommy Lee Jones) is a little more complicated (as it always is, of course). 

I liked it, as it was a not only a journey into space, to solve an issue, but it was also taking a journey with the main character, maybe paralleling with one own's journey of life itself. Who are we? 

Quote: The Rube

Ad Astra:

An astronaut embarks on a space mission to investigate a threat to the universe and uncover the truth about his father who disappeared thirty years ago.

Slow-paced, but very cerebral. Pitt's character is very much detached at the beginning, but as the story moves along, is calmly looking for his sense of self, he derails a bit, and then finds closure. The truth about his father (Tommy Lee Jones) is a little more complicated (as it always is, of course). 

I liked it, as it was a not only a journey into space, to solve an issue, but it was also taking a journey with the main character, maybe paralleling with one own's journey of life itself. Who are we? 

Moon Pirates and baboons in space! 

Quote: YoungEagle

Quote: The Rube

Ad Astra:

An astronaut embarks on a space mission to investigate a threat to the universe and uncover the truth about his father who disappeared thirty years ago.

Slow-paced, but very cerebral. Pitt's character is very much detached at the beginning, but as the story moves along, is calmly looking for his sense of self, he derails a bit, and then finds closure. The truth about his father (Tommy Lee Jones) is a little more complicated (as it always is, of course). 

I liked it, as it was a not only a journey into space, to solve an issue, but it was also taking a journey with the main character, maybe paralleling with one own's journey of life itself. Who are we? 

Moon Pirates and baboons in space! 

I also liked that apparently it is relatively okay to murder simply because you are in space.

”Good grief he just murdered like five people!”

”He’s in space what is he supposed to do?”

Well, he didn't MEAN to do it. He said that he wasn't coming as a threat....

Quote: The Rube

Well, he didn't MEAN to do it. He said that he wasn't coming as a threat....

That whole Mars launch sequence was really dumb.  I found Ad Astra mildly entertaining but a lot like the original Twister its sort of unintentionally funny. 

Unabomber: In His Own Words:
The beginning of the Unabomber's campaign of terror from 1978 to 1985; a look into his childhood to discover what might have turned the young mathematical genius with few friends, Ted Kaczynski, into a sociopathic terrorist.

Using the ONE interview in prison as an audio guideline, this 4 part series follows the story. Quite an interesting accompaniment to the recent Netflix movie, providing factual details, as opposed to the "fill-in/dramatic" details that the movie has (the movie is still quite good, though). 

I fully believe he was not crazy. A bit delusional in some aspects, but as far as his general message, well, look at all the concerns that he had that are coming to fruition (hint, mainly AI). It was never the cogs in the machine, it was the machine itself. Unfortunately, he took drastic measures that escape humanity and moral compasses. 

Good watch, if only to understand where he was coming from, as to an academic thought. 

The Whisper Man:
A grieving father and his young son relocate to the quiet town of Garretton, which was terrorized by a serial killer known as The Whisper Man 15 years earlier, while rumors circulate that Whisper Man worked with an accomplice.

ALL THE FORESHADOWING. ALL OF IT. It was an okay movie, but ease up on the clues, and such. Frankly, the highlight of the movie was the actor who plays The Whisper Man. That was indeed a treat. Overall, it was your basic cop drama, with a side of family issues. 

High And Low: 
An executive of a Yokohama shoe company becomes a victim of extortion when his chauffeur's son is kidnapped by mistake and held for ransom.

I had to dust this off (this was a re-watch, although it's been years since I had seen it), as I am planning on watching the new Affleck movie "Animals," which from MANY accounts is a remake with some modern twists. 

Very tight story, relying on old-fashioned police grunt-work to solve the case. It's low-key intensity in the first half of the movie to be sure, since it was pretty much filmed in one room, so the characters really have to give their all to captivate the audience. 

A moral dilemma, a bit of "class warfare," and self-values tossed in. 

For anyone who is unfamiliar with director Akira Kurosawa...this is one of his better ones. If one has the money, and you'll need bit of it nowadays, "AK 100: 25 Movies By Akira Kurosawa" is an excellent collection. Got lucky quite a few years ago and got it for about $300. Looking at the google search....it's a minimum of $1K for the set right now.