First Time Viewings: September 2016
I had a couple of weeks off work and managed to finally find some time to watch movies... 23 of them, in one month compared to 32 in the previous 8 months, so my tally is a tiny bit more respectable now but I'll still be struggling to get to 100 I reckon with a really busy October ahead.
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23 titles
- DirectorJ.J. AbramsStarsDaisy RidleyJohn BoyegaOscar IsaacAs a new threat to the galaxy rises, Rey, a desert scavenger, and Finn, an ex-stormtrooper, must join Han Solo and Chewbacca to search for the one hope of restoring peace.Viewed: 5-9-16
My Score: 7/10
As enjoyable as any of them pretty much. I'm not a Star Wars fan but I do like the movies. Whether the old trilogy or the new trilogy and the really new trilogy that has only begun, they are all around 7's and 8's. - DirectorKriv StendersStarsSimon PeggTeresa PalmerAlice BragaProfessional hit-man Charlie Wolfe finds himself in three tales of murder, blackmail and revenge after a botched contract assignment.Viewed: 5-9-16
My Score: 7/10
Thoroughly entertaining and fun Aussie movie with an excellent performance from Simon Pegg. - DirectorDuke JohnsonCharlie KaufmanStarsDavid ThewlisJennifer Jason LeighTom NoonanA man crippled by the mundanity of his life experiences something out of the ordinary.Viewed: 6-9-16
My Score: 8/10
Unique adult animation works extremely well. - DirectorDenis VilleneuveStarsEmily BluntJosh BrolinBenicio Del ToroAn idealistic FBI agent is enlisted by a government task force to aid in the escalating war against drugs at the border area between the U.S. and Mexico.Viewed: 19-9-16
My Score: 9/10
I was afraid my expectations for this would be too high but no it was about as great as I hoped. Benicio Del Toro is amazing in it. - DirectorNeill BlomkampStarsSharlto CopleyDev PatelHugh JackmanIn the near future, crime is patrolled by a mechanized police force. When one police droid, Chappie, is stolen and given new programming, he becomes the first robot with the ability to think and feel for himself.Viewed: 19-9-16
My Score: 7/10
Very good throwback to 80's post-punk sci-fi films. Better than Blomkamp's disappointing sophomore effort Elysium. - DirectorJay RoachStarsBryan CranstonDiane LaneHelen MirrenIn 1947, Dalton Trumbo was Hollywood's top screenwriter, until he and other artists were jailed and blacklisted for their political beliefs.Viewed: 19-9-16
My Score: 7/10
Terrific performance by Bryan Cranston and some really interesting details about this era of film-making which I was unsure about, though it feels a little like a missed opportunity at times due to its telemovie feel. - DirectorMichael MannStarsChris HemsworthViola DavisTang WeiA furloughed convict and his American and Chinese partners hunt a high-level cybercrime network from Chicago to Los Angeles to Hong Kong to Jakarta.Viewed: 19-9-16
My Score: 5/10
Very disappointing film from a once-great filmmaker in Michael Mann. - DirectorTom HooperStarsEddie RedmayneAlicia VikanderAmber HeardA fictitious love story loosely inspired by the lives of Danish artists Lili Elbe and Gerda Wegener. Lili and Gerda's marriage and work evolve as they navigate Lili's groundbreaking journey as a transgender pioneer.Viewed: 20-9-16
My Score: 7/10
Good stylish film from the reliable Tom Hooper though a lot of liberties are taken with the true story it's based on, but that's about usual. - DirectorGeorge MihalkaStarsPaul KelmanLori HallierNeil AffleckA decades-old folk tale surrounding a deranged murderer killing those who celebrate Valentine's Day turns out to be true to legend when a group defies the killer's order and people start turning up dead.Viewed: 20-9-16
My Score: 5/10
My first slasher film in quite some time, and even though it's my favourite director's favourite slasher film it really didn't do much for me. Same old same old except with a different setting and a nifty final scene. - DirectorMichael S. OjedaStarsAmanda Adrienne SmithMarc Anthony SamuelRodney RowlandA deaf girl is brutalized by a murderous gang who are then hunted by her when the bloodthirsty spirit of an Apache warrior inhabits her lifeless body.Viewed: 20-9-16
My Score: 6/10
Brutal revenge tale which has some interesting supernatural aspects to a rather typical film of this type. - DirectorJohn FrankenheimerStarsRoy ScheiderAnn-MargretVanityA secret fling between a man and his mistress leads to blackmail and murder.Viewed: 20-9-16
My Score: 8/10
Gritty Elmore Leonard adaptation by master filmmaker John Frankenheimer. Includes an exceptionally brilliant performance by Clarence Williams III. - DirectorAbel FerraraStarsDrea de MatteoLillo BrancatoLisa ValensA New York drug dealer is kidnapped, and his wife must try to come up with the money and drugs to free him from his abductors before Christmas.Viewed: 21-9-16
My Score: 8/10
A rather simple uncluttered film seems a little light on story but packs quite a punch regardless. An excellent film from Abel ferrara. - DirectorLászló NemesStarsGéza RöhrigLevente MolnárUrs RechnA Jewish-Hungarian concentration camp prisoner sets out to give a child he mistook for his son a proper burial.Viewed: 21-9-16
My Score: 7/10
Good unique take on Nazi concentration camps has some really good qualities but the generally weak basic story lets it down somewhat. I was expecting a lot more from this Oscar winner. - DirectorAlejandro JodorowskyStarsAlejandro JodorowskyHoracio SalinasZamira SaundersIn a corrupt, greed-fueled world, a powerful alchemist leads a messianic character and seven materialistic figures to the Holy Mountain, where they hope to achieve enlightenment.Viewed: 21-9-16
My Score: 8/10
After being disappointed by El Topo I was worried about this one too. Not the masterpiece some claim but this one has many interesting elements to it. - DirectorCarl ReinerStarsSteve MartinBernadette PetersCatlin AdamsA simpleminded, sheltered country boy suddenly decides to leave his family home to experience life in the big city, where his naivete is both his best friend and his worst enemy.Viewed: 22-9-16
My Score: 7/10
Finally got to see this, and it's quite funny in parts, though not often enough. But maybe with a couple of more viewings it might work better but it seems like its one for the nostalgic value, which unfortunately has no nostalgic value at all for me. Still, Steve Martin simply wonderful. - DirectorJames WanStarsPatrick WilsonVera FarmigaRon LivingstonParanormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren work to help a family terrorized by a dark presence in their farmhouse.Viewed: 22-9-16
My Score: 6/10
An Amityville re-hash which is a bit better than the aforementioned film but doesn't break any new ground and is only mildly scary. - DirectorRob LettermanStarsJack BlackDylan MinnetteOdeya RushA teenager teams up with the daughter of young-adult horror author R.L. Stine after the writer's imaginary demons are set free on the town of Madison, Delaware.Viewed: 23-9-16
My Score: 7/10
A very fun film with Jack Black in fine form, though that is probably a slight problem as there is really no true scares because it's just so much fun. - DirectorScott CooperStarsJohnny DeppBenedict CumberbatchDakota JohnsonThe true story of Whitey Bulger, the brother of a state senator and the most infamous violent criminal in the history of South Boston, who became an FBI informant to take down a Mafia family invading his turf.Viewed: 24-9-16
My Score: 8/10
An excellent lead performance by the ever reliable Johnny Depp elevates this crime film into a must-see for crime lovers. - DirectorFreddie FrancisStarsJoan CollinsPeter CushingRalph RichardsonFive strangers get lost in a crypt and, after meeting the mysterious Crypt Keeper, receive visions of how they will die.Viewed: 24-9-16
My Score: 7/10
A fun anthology horror film. - DirectorGuillermo del ToroStarsMia WasikowskaJessica ChastainTom HiddlestonIn the aftermath of a family tragedy, an aspiring author is torn between love for her childhood friend and the temptation of a mysterious outsider. Trying to escape the ghosts of her past, she is swept away to a house that breathes, bleeds - and remembers.Viewed: 25-9-16
My Score: 7/10
An amazing looking film is let down somewhat by a generic ghost story. - DirectorRyan CooglerStarsMichael B. JordanSylvester StalloneTessa ThompsonThe former World Heavyweight Champion Rocky Balboa serves as a trainer and mentor to Adonis Johnson, the son of his late friend and former rival Apollo Creed.Viewed: 25-9-16
My Score: 8/10
Just when I think the Rocky storyline can not pump out another good movie in this era I was proven wrong. The sensational camera work and direction from Ryan Coogler elevates this film into something special. - DirectorBaltasar KormákurStarsJason ClarkeAng Phula SherpaThomas M. WrightOn May 10, 1996, mountain guides Rob Hall and Scott Fischer combine their expedition teams for a final ascent to the summit of Mount Everest. With little warning, a storm strikes the mountain and the climbers must now battle to survive.Viewed: 27-9-16
My Score: 8/10
Another film I was expecting disappointment from but was happily proven wrong again. An exceptional matter-of-fact retelling of the disaster of 1996, has minimal embellishments from Hollywood and has some amazing scenery. It also probably helps that I'm in awe of this mountain as it is. Great job by Baltasar Kormákur. - DirectorKen AnnakinStarsLeslie PhillipsStanley BaxterWilfrid Hyde-WhiteForsdyke, a pathological petty thief subjects himself to a strict correction course run by a wealthy ex-con Widdowes and his Crooks Anonymous organization. Forsdyke's young and innocent girlfriend Babette, holds the hopes for his recovery and promises that she'll marry him if he'll reform. However, Forsdyke loses control when he's locked in a department store over Christmas.Viewed: 28-9-16
My Score: 7/10
A charming little british comedy from the 60's to end a solid month of film watching. More smirk inducing than laugh out loud but you gotta love that British charm.