What was the last movie you saw?

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Jestak
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Re: What was the last movie you saw?

Post by Jestak »

James Woods has been known for quite some time for bringing a maniacal intensity to his roles; it was films like Cop which earned him that reputation. Woods co-produced this one, adapted from a James Ellroy novel. Lloyd Hopkins (Woods) is a homicide cop who plays by his own set of rules; when he is assigned the investigation of a woman's murder, he quickly convinces himself that the killing is one of several by a serial killer who's been operating under the LAPD's nose for 15 years. Bookstore owner Kathleen (Leslie Ann Down) may be able to supply some vital information on the case; Lloyd's mentor in the department, Dutch (Charles Durning) may be able to keep him out of trouble with his superiors. But if they don't, Lloyd will still try to get his man. This one was pretty good--nicely hard-edged, and one of the definitive James Woods performances. The one weakness is that it falls apart a little bit at the ending, with the sequence of events making little sense.
"May the hinges of friendship never rust, nor the wings of love lose a feather"--Scottish blessing
Jestak
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Re: What was the last movie you saw?

Post by Jestak »

My movie tonight was To Die For, a subtly effective black comedy from Gus Van Sant. Suzanne Stone (Nicole Kidman) is a very ambitious woman; she believes that "You aren't really anybody in America if you're not on TV," so she wants desperately to get some kind of network TV career going. She's only managed step #1--working at the local cable TV station--when she figures out that her much less driven husband, Larry (Matt Dillon), who has no ambitions beyond the small town of Little Hope, NH, is going to be an obstacle. Through her TV job, though, she has the answer--manipulate three losers from the local high school into bumping Larry off. This was a good one. Buck Henry's script has lots of spot-on social commentary, seldom heavy-handed. Kidman tops the cast in one of her best performances ever (I have a lot more respect for her as an actress after seeing this), and in support you have Illeana Douglas, Joaquin Phoenix, Dan Hedaya, Casey Afleck, and Holland Taylor (whose presence in a cast is almost always a good sign).
"May the hinges of friendship never rust, nor the wings of love lose a feather"--Scottish blessing
Jestak
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Re: What was the last movie you saw?

Post by Jestak »

Back in the 1950s, it was rare for a science fiction movie to be an A-picture; one of the exceptions was Forbidden Planet. I watched it tonight; it's quite good. The plot is a loose adaptation of, of all things, Shakespeare's The Tempest. A starship lands on the planet Altair 4, searching for survivors from another expedition sent there years before. Commander Adams (Leslie Nielsen) and his men find three inhabitants: Dr. Morbius (Walter Pidgeon), his daughter Altaira (Anne Francis), and a robot named Robby. But the good doctor has secrets, which have to do with the ancient civilization which once occupied the planet, and with the immense powers they controlled. PIdgeon is very good, and if you're only familiar with Nielsen's post-Airplane work, you'll be amazed at seeing him as a romantic leading man. The special effects are quite good, given the technical limitations of the time, and on the whole the movie holds up pretty well today.
"May the hinges of friendship never rust, nor the wings of love lose a feather"--Scottish blessing
Jacobs-girl
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Re: What was the last movie you saw?

Post by Jacobs-girl »

I saw The Lake House with Sandra Bullock and Keanu Reeves. Quite a strange plot-line and it's slightly cheesy but it's ok and did actually make me start to tear up at one part!
"You want a nice stereo? Drive your own car"" (Bella, New Moon, ch. 1)

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Jestak
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Re: What was the last movie you saw?

Post by Jestak »

The Spanish Prisoner is the name given to a classic confidence scheme, so it should be no surprise that the (very good) film of that title is from David Mamet, who absolutely loves creating films about cons and the artists who pull them. Joe Ross (Campbell Scott) has invented a MacGuffin (called simply "The Process"), which he introduces to his bosses at a Caribbean corporate retreat. While on the island, he meets Jimmy Dell (Steve Martin), who gains Joe's confidence and, when everyone gets back to Manhattan, offers to introduce Joe to his beautiful sister. Before long, though, Joe finds that Jimmy may be really out to get his "Process," and that even a woman who says she's an FBI agent may be in on the scam. The only person Joe seems to be able to trust is the new secretary at his firm, Susan (Rebecca Pidgeon, aka Mrs. Mamet), who admits to having a thing for him. One thing you can count on with Mamet is that there will always be at least one or two more layers of deception than the norm for thrillers of this sort. You can also count on plenty of delicious dialogue, much of it here from Mamet regular Ricky Jay. This is one of the few post-Hitchcock thrillers to really pull off the "wrong man" type of plot.
"May the hinges of friendship never rust, nor the wings of love lose a feather"--Scottish blessing
Jestak
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Re: What was the last movie you saw?

Post by Jestak »

Tonight I watched The Fifth Element, Luc Besson's inventive, over-the-top sci-fi thriller. Korben Dallas (Bruce Willis) is a 23rd century cabbie who picks up a very unusual fare one day--orange-haired Leeloo (Milla Jovovich) literally drops into his cab. It turns out that she is the "fifth element," the key to defending Earth from an ancient evil. The two of them are then off on a wild quest to save life as we know it. This was a visually stunning film, rivaling Blade Runner in giving a unique visualization of the future. Willis anchors the film with one of his best performances, and Jovovich does a nice job in a breakthrough role. On the down side, the plot is unbelievably chaotic, and Chris Tucker's character is in Jar-Jar Binks territory when it comes to annoying both the other characters and the audience. Overall, definitely worth a look.
"May the hinges of friendship never rust, nor the wings of love lose a feather"--Scottish blessing
FB92
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Re: What was the last movie you saw?

Post by FB92 »

Devil. And to be quite honest it was a really really weird movie. I had no clue that the old lady was the devil as she was 'killed' half way through the film. I kept thinking it was the guy, along with I bet quite a few others. So yeah. Really shocked me. xD But a great movie nevertheless. 10/10!
Jestak
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Re: What was the last movie you saw?

Post by Jestak »

Because the Lethal Weapon series deteriorated into little more than slop by the end, it sometimes is a little easy to forget that the first in the series is quite good. The plot is pretty implausible, but the two lead cops, sober family man Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover) and borderline psychotic Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson) are developed quite nicely. The chemistry between Glover and Gibson was what made the films work. Add to that some very good--if a bit overblown--action sequences, and memorable villains played by Gary Busey and Mitchell Ryan, and you have a very nice action thriller.
"May the hinges of friendship never rust, nor the wings of love lose a feather"--Scottish blessing
Jestak
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Re: What was the last movie you saw?

Post by Jestak »

Kenneth Branagh made his directing debut with a very nice film version of Shakespeare's Henry V, in which he also starred. While Branagh's touch as director is not as assured as in his later, superb film of Hamlet, he gives us a very effective portrayal of Shakespeare's warrior king. Among the large supporting cast there are a number of standouts: Paul Scofield as a dignified King Charles VI of France, Brian Blessed as a stalwart Duke of Exeter, and above all Ian Holm's memorable Fluellen. Also, watch for a very young Christian Bale.
"May the hinges of friendship never rust, nor the wings of love lose a feather"--Scottish blessing
MouseyZbyszko
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Re: What was the last movie you saw?

Post by MouseyZbyszko »

It's 3:55am Eastern Time and I'm right now in the middle of watching GIA, starring Angelina Jolie ( back before anyone knew who she was off the street ). It's about America's first ever Wilhelmina SuperModel.

This poor girl came from a broken home, drug addiction, an industry that never let her rest or take a break, even when she ASKED for it so she could have time to "think" -- her girlfriend left her, her mentor died ( the head of Wilhelmina Models, "Wilhelmina Cooper". I already know how this movie ends but still --- *ugh* -- I feel so sorry for Gia. :cry:

She did end up dying of H.I.V.

R.I.P. Gia Marie Carangi :bye:
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