Film Diary: 2022
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- DirectorMichael CurtizStarsErrol FlynnBrenda MarshallClaude RainsGeoffrey Thorpe, a buccaneer, is hired by Queen Elizabeth I to nag the Spanish Armada. The Armada is waiting for the attack on England and Thorpe surprises them with attacks on their galleons where he shows his skills on the sword.Finished watching this wonderful romp in the wee hours of this year.
- DirectorWilliam MarshallRobert FloreyStarsErrol FlynnMicheline PresleVincent PriceA sea captain becomes involved with a servant girl in early New Orleans. She sees him as a way to gain access into wealthy households.
- DirectorWalter HillStarsKeith CarradinePowers BootheFred WardDuring a routine exercise, a team of National Guardsmen are threatened by angry and violent locals.As of January 21 I have seen this film twice this year (Think I'm up to four times now, in October). Likely to watch it again later on. Upped it from 7 to 8 based on my enjoyment of it.
It's often compared to "Deliverance", for good reason, but I think there is a fundamental difference in how the natives are portrayed. In Deliverance they seem genuinely evil at times, even if the main characters are hardly likable, at least they don't deserve to be raped and murdered just for being there. In this the military team are clearly in the wrong from the very beginning, and there's no wonder the Cajun hunters first react the way they do. After that everything gradually escalates, and to great effect.
Here the problem first springs from one unstable, unreliable asshole who decides to joke around with loose amunition. He should probably already have been disciplined, but these exercises are taken quite lightly. So the military steal a couple of canoes, they shoot at the hunters, they take someone captive and tortures him, and then they blow his house up... Except for the shooting, it's always in response to a situation some of them believe to be something it isn't yet, which in itself makes it so.
In my own genre-terms, this is a brilliant example of "Travelling in bad weather", where the guys stomp around in a swamp for days on end. It's great. There's a bit where they decide to retreat - cut to them running as best they can while knee-deep in water. It sounds about as stealthy as the pirates of Penzance.
Then there are of course the characters and the group dynamic, constantly shifting and building as one by one go down. The whole group is a perfect boiling-pot for tension-stew. But ultimately the movie belongs to Keith Carradine and Powers Boothe, as the lone/joint survivors and as brilliant representatives of two differing worldviews. Carradine as the easy-going, smooth talking charmer who takes everything as it comes, never stumped or surprised by anything. Pragmatic to the chore. And Boothe as a distanced cynic, competent enough to face anything but too much of a realist to accept the extraordinary situation he finds himself in. It's just too dumb to believe.
There's also an element of "Dog Soldiers", well, the other way around... - StarsPowers BootheBilly KearnsKathryn Leigh ScottPrivate detective Philip Marlowe solves many crimes in Los Angeles during the 1930s.Excellent Marlowe, despite the stories not even being ones with Marlowe originally. The tone and atmosphere is just right, in that strange '80s/'90s way. It also has a few really nice ugly-fights... The last episode is my favourite, purely for atmosphere - that weird, almost otherworldly feeling you sometimes get when the weather is too hot, on the verge of a great big thunderstorm. Something's in the air.
- DirectorWalter HillStarsNick NoltePowers BootheMichael IronsideA Texas Ranger and a ruthless narcotics kingpin - they were childhood friends, now they are adversaries...Mostly worth watching for an incredibly hammy Powers Boothe-performance.
- DirectorAllan EdwallStarsStefan EkmanClaire WikholmAnna GodeniusDet närmaste i filmversion jag har sett av "Le Train de Venise". Ensam man åker tåg mitt i varma sommarn, råkar få med sig väska hem eftersom mannen som ägde den mystiskt försvann under resan, väskan visar sig innehålla pengar, mannen vill behålla pengarna men driver sig själv till vansinne av att försöka rättfärdiga det faktum att han har dem. I den här filmen blandas också polisen in och flera andra personer i mannens omgivning får reda på att han har pengarna, vilket ju ställer till det hela ytterligare.
En särskilt efterhängsen figur spelas av en lysande Lars-Erik Berenett, som senare blir påkörd i en något blodigare vändning än jag hade väntat av en typisk gammal SVT-kriminalkomedi - och allt för stålarnas skull.
Stefan Ekman är en utmärkt underdog-hjälte som gör alla tänkbara fel. Varför är han inte i fler filmer? - DirectorJohn BoormanStarsPowers BootheMeg FosterYara VaneauAfter the son of engineer Bill Markham is abducted by an aboriginal tribe on the edge of the rain forest, the engineer spends the next 10 years searching for him.
- DirectorTony RichardsonStarsJessica LangeTommy Lee JonesPowers BootheCarly moves with her military husband and their two daughters to an isolated army base, only to quickly become part of a cover-up involving nuclear bomb tests.Surprisingly good. All central performances especially so. Lange and Jones reminded me a lot of Davies and Falk in "A Woman Under the Influence". Boothe does a great smarmy guy and the kids are really likable, despite being kids!
The scene where Lange and the kids finally get to visit Jones at the hospital, and he turns out to be a drivelling vegetable, is not unpredictable, but heart-wrenching. - DirectorStanley KramerStarsVivien LeighSimone SignoretJosé FerrerA varied group of passengers boarding a ship bound for pre-WWII Germany represents a microcosm of early 1930s society.
- DirectorJames GrayStarsBrad PittTommy Lee JonesRuth NeggaAstronaut Roy McBride undertakes a mission across an unforgiving solar system to uncover the truth about his missing father and his doomed expedition that now, 30 years later, threatens the universe.Another surprisingly good movie. I thought it was going to be something like "Moon", which I half liked but wasn't that invested in. This has a darker tone, but not the kind that comes from taking itself too seriously. I came to think of it as a Xavier Dorrison-type story and pacing (having just read several of his comic book-series). There are bits that should be dull because nothing is happening, but I instead found myself intrigued. There is a sense of going deeper and deeper into an abyss where every step could be the point of no return (not unlike "Sanctum", for instance). It is both a physical abyss and an emotional one, where the hero is set up to be shut off and you know that his one weak spot is the relationsship to his father. The journey explores that further in a way that you're constantly on edge, waiting for the hero to finally crack.
It's a sombre, slowly paced russian doll of a movie, where you peel off layer after layer to get to the truth, and when you get there it maybe isn't so nice after all.
There are also elements of "Space Cowboys" crossed with "Event Horizon", which shouldn't go together, but they do. - StarsMatt BerryDoon MackichanFred ArmisenSteven Toast is determined to win the recognition he mistakenly believes he deserves.All of it (6 episodes).
Toast keeps in style. That Rug Fruit fella knows what he's doing. - DirectorAlan TaylorStarsAlessandro NivolaLeslie Odom Jr.Jon BernthalWitness the making of Tony Soprano. The story that reveals the humanity behind Tony's struggles and the influence his family - especially his uncle, Dickie Moltisanti - had over him becoming the most iconic mob boss of all time.
- DirectorArne MattssonStarsSickan CarlssonGunnar BjörnstrandKarl-Arne HolmstenThe spoiled son of a weapons manufacturer falls in love with a manicurist, to the horror of his parents. Class limits may not be exceeded.Tråkig story men fantastiskt bildspråk, kameraarbete och ljussättning! Uppfinningsrika åkningar, bilder genom andra objekt, symmetriska former, otroligt snygg blocking, m.m. Slå av ljudet och kolla på bilderna!
- DirectorWilliam A. GrahamStarsPowers BootheNed BeattyIrene CaraThe real-life story of the Peoples Temple cult led by Reverend Jim Jones and the events involving its move to Guyana and its eventual mass suicide.
- DirectorPaul WendkosStarsSusan BlakelyPowers BootheCharles SiebertDivorcee Susan Blakely, with no alimony and two kids to support, begins turning to amphetamines. While at her lowest ebb, she meets an alcoholic and three-time loser in marriage--who, incredibly, turns out to be the ideal man!Cute and raw at the same time. Great acting.
- DirectorJack SholderStarsPowers BootheRebecca De MornayJames Earl JonesA non-NATO nuclear missile is fired from Turkey at USSR, where it detonates. Soviet response is automatic as it's seen as a NATO missile. Can continued escalation be avoided? We follow the US president and a bomber crew.
- DirectorRobert AldrichStarsJack PalanceLee MarvinEddie AlbertIn 1944, an American Infantry company sets up an artillery observation post, but tensions between Captain Cooney and Lieutenant Costa run high.
- DirectorSamuel FullerStarsLee MarvinMark HamillRobert CarradineA hardened sergeant and the four core members of his infantry unit try to survive World War II as they move from battle to battle throughout Europe.Interesting, but a little too disjointed for my taste. The story takes place over such a long time that it becomes hard to really latch on to anything or experience anything as horrible, even though it undeniably is. I kind of got battle fatigue along with the characters. Lee Marvin is great, obviously. But I never felt any true emotional connection to any one of them, like in, say "The Story of G.I. Joe" (which also follows a company and takes place over a longer period of time).
- DirectorLyndon ChubbuckStarsKiefer SutherlandRebecca De MornayDana DelanyA detective falls for the man she's supposed to be investigating; dire complications follow.Hardly original or unpredictable, but a lot of fun! Much like "Mean Season" this feels like a classic noir in a 90s' suit. I love the atmosphere in these types of neo noirs. On a triple-bill, I'd also add "Gotham" even though it was made 1988. VR5 has a similar style too, despite being a sci-fi-noir. It's a wonderfully atmospheric world somewhere between reality and booze-improved tall-tale, often with some supernatural elements that could possibly be explained as brain-ghosts rather than actual ones, but you're never quite sure. The Marlowe-episode "Red Wind" has this in spades too. I don't care if it makes sense or if I can predict the ending - I just want to live in that world. There is something oddly comforting about it.
- DirectorEd ByeStarsHarry EnfieldKevin EldonPaul WhitehouseAs part of the BBC2 50th-anniversary celebrations, comedians Harry Enfield and Paul Whitehouse were commissioned to produce this spoof history of the channel. It parodies the channel, its content, and the history documentary.I think I've seen this before, but I hadn't marked it, so here goes. Very funny. I especially appreciate the willingness to take the piss out of themselves.
- DirectorNeil MarshallStarsCharlotte KirkSean PertweeSteven WaddingtonGrace, a young widow haunted by the recent suicide of her husband Joseph, is falsely accused of being a witch by her Landlord after she rejects his advances.12/1 01:54
What to say about this oddity? I never thought I'd accuse Neil Marshall of restraint, but there it is. I was surprised by how little of the gore was really shown, given the subject matter. The closest I can think of to what it looked like he was trying to do, is Costa-Gavras's "The Confession"; just one dreaded day after another of excrutiating torture. I liked the idea of putting the viewer on trial alongside the main character, and exploring what it takes to survive and stay relatively sane through a hopeless situation. But then it was an adventure film all of a sudden...
This film does not know what to be - is it a horror film? Is it an action adventure? A psychological thriller? A drama about the inner workings of religious fanatics? A survival story? A revenge narrative?
And if it is horror - what kind of horror is it trying to achieve? Is the implication that the Devil is stalking these people, perhaps the Witchfinder more so than the accused? There is certainly something interesting there. Especially between the Witchfinder and his "redeemed" accomplice, the half-burned former "witch" who assists him and actually executes the torture that he is to squeemish to do himself. These characters and their convictions are fascinating in that they truly believe in what they do. If people just confessed and repented, they would be genuinely relieved. But people don't. They choice to make them both human rather than clichéd monsters is, I think, largely successful. I found myself intrigued by them and their relationship, wishing that the focus lay on them and make it something more akin to Ken Russell's "The Devils" instead.
Then we have the main character, Grace Haverstock. The main problem for me, viewing it as a survival-horror film, is the fact that this woman was pretty sure to survive the entire time, which takes away a lot of potential tension. Had there been an ensemble cast like in several other Marshall movies, I'd at least be biting my nails to see who made it out of the ordeal alive - if anyone. I found Grace to be quite bland, but not as annoying as I feared. To be really invested in her struggle and her vendetta with the Witchfinder though, she would have had to have more of a well-defined personality. All of her backstory (which keeps popping up) is "sad, betrayed lady". Her mother is killed as a witch by the same general who sentences her, her (very wonderful and sweet and lovely and particularly amazing) husband gets plague and then hangs himself, and then her baby is taken away from her as she is betrayed by a close friend and imprisoned as a witch too. None of these things have anything to do with her as a person. They just happen to her. I'd like to see some more personality than "strong woman".
As Grace is tortured she retreats into memories of her (wonderful, incredibly brilliant and lovely) husband. This is an intriguing possibility for storytelling that isn't utilized fully. With this technique, the film could prime the audience to feel a shudder every time we see something nice, because we know what's happening in reality is so terrifying and painful not even the main character can stand it without drifting away. Much like the camera sliding down the stairs in "Frenzy" or the violinist who cries while he plays because he knows that it's just a way to cover up the noice while Tuco is beaten to a pulp by Angel Eyes...
Last point: The look of the whole thing. I don't know if this was down to budget constraints or what, but it looks like it was made for tv sometime in the early 2000's, by someone who didn't know the difference between 1600 and the early 2000's. Grace has potted flowers in the window. There is no mud or soot or general dirtyness. Not only did the peasants own an ironingboard, but they also went to the hairdresser and had their personal stylists, seemingly. The editing feels very tv-movie-like in its erratic fashion, as does the floaty camerawork, the colour choices, the lighting, the droning creepy-music that hovers over the entire film until it finally converts itself into an upbeat avenging-ditty for the ending. The opening in black and white is actually more in style with the story it seems to want to tell. Or the story i wanted it to tell.
Watching it as a made for tv-movie from 2003 made on a mini-budget in a week, it's pretty good. But I wish it was re-written, shot on film in 70s' Hammer-style, possibly with several women sharing the lead, with more focus on manipulation, temptation, fanatic lunacy, and surviving through the ordeal, as well as the dynamic between the Witchfinder and the burned woman. That, I think, would make for a complex classic. This, however, is not.
Oh, and they can keep the laughable (possibly unintentional) reference to "The Court Jester" during the climax, but it would play out more along the lines of "Hateful 8"... - DirectorByron HaskinStarsLizabeth ScottDon DeForeDan DuryeaThrough a fluke circumstance, a ruthless woman stumbles across a suitcase filled with $60,000, and is determined to hold onto it even if it means murder.(Med pappa). I did not expect that lady to be quite as ruthless as she was. I was very happily surprised by her final killing-spree.
- DirectorGordon DouglasStarsRichard BooneStuart WhitmanAnthony FranciosaA former Confederate officer and a Mexican try to prevent a former Confederate colonel from selling stolen rifles to renegade Apaches in Mexico.
- DirectorJoseph M. NewmanStarsRichard WidmarkConstance SmithJeffrey HunterDrama dealing with the hazardous work of the U. S. Forest Service's paratroop fire-fighters in Montana.
- DirectorLamont JohnsonStarsRobert BlakeLloyd BochnerRichard BooneAssistant State's Attorney Chris Dale (Boone) heads to a small town to get a statement from murder suspect Ellen Dudley (Leslie), who has been captured there and is accused of killing her husband. Dale's arrogant attitude is revealed by his treatment of his assistant (Rainey), the town sheriff (Stevens), and particularly his own wife (Nolan). While interrogating Ellen, Dale comes to see parallels between the way her husband treated her and the way he treats his wife.
- DirectorRichard A. CollaStarsPowers BoothePam DawberLisa CollinsA forensic psychatrist of the Police Department falls for a fatal attraction that threatens to terminate his marriage, his career and his life.
- DirectorMaria de MedeirosStarsStefano AccorsiMaria de MedeirosJoaquim de AlmeidaStory of the 1974 coup that overthrew the right-wing Portuguese dictatorship--which continued the fascist policies of long-time dictator Antonio Salazar--and of two young army captains who were involved in it.
- DirectorMario CamusStarsCarmen MauraJoaquim de AlmeidaTito ValverdeAna is a former ETA member who lives in a village called Bermillo de Sayago, near the border with Portugal. She works as a veterinary with her friend and fellow Dario. With him, she shares her daily tasks, along with their daughter Amalia. Ana is a woman hidden in herself, but one day she meets José, an attractive man who makes it return to her past since José participated in the dirty war in Spain (GAL) against Basque refugees in France.
- DirectorGeorge MihalkaStarsDavid WarnerMichael IronsideKate VernonA man takes three co-workers hostage while working overtime on Thanksgiving weekend. He has no demands.Feels like a fever dream. Warner is good in it, though.
- DirectorDavid SandbergStarsDavid SandbergJorma TacconeSteven ChewIn 1985, Kung Fury, the toughest martial artist cop in Miami, goes back in time to kill the worst criminal of all time - Kung Führer, a.k.a. Adolf Hitler.(Skolfilm inför snack med storyboardaren). Yep. It's exactly what it claims to be. And it's proud of it. As it should be.
- DirectorPedro OleaStarsOmero AntonuttiAssumpta SernaJoaquim de AlmeidaA fencing master in pre-revolution Spain is hired to teach fencing to a beautiful young woman. Although he has never taught a woman before, he is fascinated by her and agrees. She wishes to learn a particular thrust which he is famous for. When a local nobleman becomes involved with her the intrigue begins.
- DirectorJeannot SzwarcStarsEmily DeschanelDavid BoreanazMichaela ConlinBrennan & Booth are in Buenos Aires for their honeymoon. Brennan is not used to sitting idle so she takes Booth to a morgue, and she finds unidentified bones of a victim. She and Booth help the local police solve the crime.Dull episode of a show that I've never actually seen. Typical procedural-tv-acting and stakes and sub-plots. Even the lighting feels middle-of-the-road. There's no character to anything really. Just some quirky bits, because it needs to be a little fun, and some crime-solvy bits, because it's a crime-show, and some relationship talk, because there has to be some kind of development, but not too far or else the people who missed this episode will be too confused for the next one, and so on and so on. It's like a Mecano, just piece together the parts and it becomes an episode. The writing is about as procedural as their crime-solving methods. I did however get a little surprised at who the killer was, and I enjoyed seing de Almeida guide Boreanaz through every café and coffee shop.
- DirectorNicholas MeyerStarsChristopher WalkenLuke AskewClancy BrownBased on a true tale of power, corruption and murder, Christopher Walken stars in the story of the largest lynching in American history...
- DirectorMiguel Faria Jr.StarsJoaquim de AlmeidaAnthony O'DonnellMaria de MedeirosRio de Janeiro, 1886. Actress Sarah Bernhardt performs at the city's Municipal Theater, captivating the local audience enthralled by French culture. The city is at her feet, and even the Emperor Dom Pedro II comes to pay his respects. He confides a secret to her: the disappearance of a precious Stradivarius violin presented by him to the charming widow Baroness Maria Luiza. The actress suggests he hire her friend, the legendary British detective Sherlock Holmes, to solve the case. Under the heat of the tropical sun, the lives of Holmes and Watson are changed forever, as they find themselves knee-deep in a cultural hodgepodge that includes all the standard Brazilian tourist fare.
- DirectorRené BonnièreStarsPeta WilsonRoy DupuisDon FrancksNikita and Michael pose as a happily married couple in order to obtain information about First Flag, an infamous terrorist group, from its leader's attorney, Roland Armel.The only episode I have (so far) seen of "Nikita". Slightly confused as to how they manipulated the mobster into knocking on their door, but an intriguing story otherwise. I came to feel sorry for the bad guy, as Nikita does, finding out that the agency staged the entire accident and kept the kid away from his father in order for him to believe the kid was dead. The look of pain and terror on his face when he gets to see the child without being able to speak to him, only to be whisked away to execution, that's quite something.
- DirectorPaolo TavianiVittorio TavianiStarsVincent SpanoJoaquim de AlmeidaGreta ScacchiAfter the bankruptcy of their father's stonemasonry firm, Nicola and Andrea emigrate to America to restore their fortunes. After many adventures and near-disasters, they end up in Hollywood designing sets for D.W. Griffith and marry beautiful actresses, but tragedy strikes with the arrival of World War I, which finds the brothers fighting on opposite sides...
- DirectorJoaquim LeitãoStarsMaria de MedeirosJoaquim de AlmeidaKarra ElejaldeCatarina Menezes is a bisexual TV reporter who decides to have a child on her own and chooses Spanish humanitarian doctor Rafael to father the child, setting up an elaborate charade to lure him into her bed. When Catarina reveals her pregnancy, though, her current live-in girlfriend doesn't take to it kindly and promises to make Catarina's life hell; to make matters worse, Rafael finds out her true identity and comes to Lisbon to see her. And Catarina's sole refuge is in the arms of fellow journalist Francisco, her professional relationship slowly becoming a romantic one.
- DirectorLance HoolStarsTom BerengerJoaquim de AlmeidaDaniela RomoJohn Riley, an Irish immigrant soldier recruited in the American army during the Mexican-American War faces anti-immigrant and anti-Catholic bigotry from his fellow servicemen and defects to the Mexican army.
- DirectorRonald ChammahStarsIsabelle HuppertJoaquim de AlmeidaDavid WarrilowA young woman gives in to a man who reminds her of another.
- DirectorJosé NascimentoStarsJoaquim de AlmeidaPaula GuedesJorge Silva Melo(In Portuguese and French)
Highly enjoyable strange neo-noir. In style and tone very similar to "Mi Manda Picone", which is in no way a bad thing. Also somewhat "The Numbers Game". Sometimes straight noir, at other times confusingly farcical. The villains who later turn out to be cooperative, look like Vogue models from the '90s, which put me off a bit, but the rest is keeping in style with a classic 1940's setting.
The drug-addiction thing doesn't really go anywhere, but it's an interesting facet to the noir hero. I have also never seen anyone on film look quite so sick as he does in the first shots on the plane, for which I must applaude the movie (and of course the acting). It's a strange but very captivating and different way to introduce a sort of hard-boiled hero. - DirectorRichie AdamsStarsJoaquim de AlmeidaAunjanue Ellis-TaylorBill CobbsA story about a beautiful street musician suffering from memory loss and a disheartened neuroscientist intent on helping her, bringing together the city of New Orleans and the jazz that made it famous.Cute, but a little too shallow where it wanted to be deep.
- DirectorAllison R. HebbleZed StarkovichStarsChristina HendricksJoaquim de AlmeidaLeisha HaileySet between three interweaving stories, the film explores the different facets of new relationships, pregnancy and infidelity, ultimately making the kitchen the centerpiece of their lives.
- DirectorDavid Gordon GreenStarsSandra BullockBilly Bob ThorntonAnthony MackieA battle-hardened American political consultant is sent to help re-elect a controversial president in Bolivia, where she must compete with a long-term rival working for another candidate.
- DirectorPatrick HughesStarsRyan ReynoldsSamuel L. JacksonGary OldmanOne of the world's top bodyguards gets a new client, a world class hitman who must testify at the International Criminal Court. They must put their differences aside and work together to make it to the trial alive and on time.
- DirectorAntónio-Pedro VasconcelosStarsJoaquim de AlmeidaEmmanuelle SeignerNicolau BreynerEvery year, four ex-soldiers who call themselves "Os Imortais" ("The Immortals"), get together with four women to celebrate their war deeds and remember the old days, back in the war. On the summer of 1985, tired of their monotonous lives, they decide to rob a bank. Joaquim Malarranha, a chief inspector from the local police force who is about to retire, crosses their path and chooses to spend his last days of duty trying to solve the robbery. But as he carries on with his investigation, he discovers more than he could have ever imagined...
- DirectorImanol UribeStarsMaría BarrancoJoaquim de AlmeidaLaura del SolAfter spending a night with a sensual prostitute, the King of Spain decides that he wants to see his wife naked. His decision causes a real revolution amidst his subjects.
- DirectorEmilio Martínez LázaroStarsEduard FernándezSilvia AbascalJoaquim de Almeida"La Voz de su Amo" is a contemporary film noire set in Bilbao in 1980, an environment marked by corruption and terrorism. The lead character is Charlie, a taciturn individual in his thirties. He works as the trusted man of Mr. Oliveira, an entrepreneur of Portuguese origin who engages in dark businesses. Alarmed by a series of threats and attempts on people's lives, Oliveira decides to put his teenage daughter, Marta, under Charlie's protection. From that moment on, everything becomes complicated: love appears without prior warning, violence generates more violence, friends turn out not to be what they seemed to be and money changes hands.
- DirectorLouis-Pascal CouvelaireStarsJean-Hugues AngladeJoaquim de AlmeidaCyrille ThouveninFour partners heist a fortune in gold ore from a North African airport & escape across the desert in a truck.
- DirectorJoaquim LeitãoStarsJoaquim de AlmeidaNicolau BreynerAna BustorffTen men,ten brothers in arms who fought together in the Portuguese Colony of Angola during the colonial war,gather together every year to dinner and remember those brave times of war...this year, the presence of Nina, a prostitute and a hunt that end in a shootout, will call their instincts and traumatic pasts for one last mission...
- DirectorJoaquim LeitãoStarsJoaquim de AlmeidaMaría BarrancoAnamarMiguel has his life falling apart, but in one last push of hope, he tries to change that and start living a normal life.
- DirectorNisha GanatraStarsEmma ThompsonMindy KalingJohn LithgowA late night talk show host suspects that she may soon lose her long-running show.
- DirectorIlya NaishullerStarsBob OdenkirkAleksey SerebryakovConnie NielsenA docile family man slowly reveals his true character after his house gets burgled by two petty thieves, which, coincidentally, leads him into a bloody war with a Russian crime boss.Action movie with no pretences and no apologies. Not too unlike "The Hitman's Bodyguard" in tone and action, even though this is slightly less punny and played more straight there are still lots of fun moments and visual buffoonery. There's even a tool-shop shoot-out!
Lots of movies spring to mind as references: "Death Wish", obviously, "John Wick", but even "The Spy Next Door" and a bit of "Home Alone" and "The Kingsman"... The title brings "My Name is Nobody" to mind, which also makes sense since this is not far from a western either.
The excellent bus-fight bears many similarities to the church-scene in Kingsman.
1. It's a beautifully shot scene choreographed and performed like a dance sequence, involving long takes and a camera that follows the characters rather than blurring the actions.
2. Elements of comedy within the fight, like where he is thrown out a window and calmly gets back inside to finish them off.
3. Most interestingly to me, a strong conflict between the enjoyment of the mayhem and what is actually happening/what the guy's capabilities reveal him to be.
This last point I think had a lot more potential to elevate the movie further than it did the way it played out. But the existance of it is still interesting. Hutch wants to fight, he itches to hurt people really badly, and possibly in a sort of masochistic way to also be hurt and stay in the line of fire, to revel in the intense burst of adrenaline that increasingly bad situations will spur. But he is also a moral man, a "good" man. He won't hurt people that he doesn't think deserve it (at least not anymore). This means that he's hoping for the people entering the bus late at night to prove to be real scum, so that he can feel justified in picking a fight with them. He practically prays for it to happen. And it does. Which kind of gives him right. Which in turn begs to question what the filmic intensions are - should we enjoy the violence, knowing that it isn't the right choice? As the film progresses it loses sight of this question and seems to become more of a straightforward revenge/survival shooter where the hero's actions are justified by the villanous Russian mob being so incredibly evil. In the midst of this there are still some moments and scenes that rebel against this whole narrative by making the viewer aware of their own complicity in what's happening (i.e. laughing or generally enjoying the gore) - like the absurdly romanticized slow-motion shots set to up-beat music while Hutch is stabbing, shooting or punching his way through a bloody pulp of former bad guys.
I think I would have preferred it if Hutch was in fact just a nobody. A normal, boring guy harbouring deep seated rage and brutality just waiting to find an excuse to unleash it on someone, and then dealing with the moral consequences of those choices. But then again, I also like the aspect of having to hide who you really are, especially in front of your own kids, even in situations where revealing it could potentially better your relationship with them. This is also touched upon mainly at the beginning where Hutch's son is deeply disappointed that his dad doesn't do anything. But then the family is edged out further and further to the outskirts of the story as Hutch focuses on keeping them safe, so this conflict isn't really given time to evolve much.
I feel like there were many plot-threads that might have been even more intriguing to explore, but then again it would probably have been more of a character study than a pedal to the metal action movie. All in all it's very enjoyable. And what it does, it does really well. I hope this is the direction action scenes are taking in general. It's also a great treat to see a self-contained 90min. movie that is just that.
Plus, there's a real checov's gun in that freezer! - DirectorRuben FleischerStarsSean PennRyan GoslingEmma StoneIt's 1949 Los Angeles, the city is run by gangsters and a malicious mobster, Mickey Cohen. Determined to end the corruption, John O'Mara assembles a team of cops, ready to take down the ruthless leader and restore peace to the city.
- DirectorPaul Thomas AndersonStarsJoaquin PhoenixJosh BrolinOwen WilsonIn 1970, drug-fueled Los Angeles private investigator Larry "Doc" Sportello investigates the disappearance of a former girlfriend.
- DirectorTom ToporStarsKeith CarradineBlythe DannerJack WardenFact-based story of a Louisiana priest accused of molesting young parishioners, and of the family of one of his victims, caught between their loyalty to their son and to their Church.
- DirectorHasse EkmanStarsEva DahlbeckGunnar BjörnstrandBibi AnderssonMarried couple have romantic interludes in the summer, she at their summer cottage, him in the apartment in town.
- DirectorAmanda AdolfssonStarsMatilda GrossLily WahlsteenMarianne MörckNelly and her dog London are about to spend autumn break with her uncle Hannibal. Soon she noticed that he doesn't live a quiet life. Her uncle is a Monster agent. Nelly gets dragged in to an adventure filled with ghosts, vampires and werewolves.
- StarsDiane MorganMichelle GreenidgeMichael SpicerMandy is a hapless, jobless heroine whose daft adventures mostly end in disaster. She's got Big Dreams, but can she actually be bothered?
- DirectorPhilip MartinStarsDavid TennantRichard McCabePatrick KennedyDrama about the development of Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity, and Einstein's relationship with British scientist Sir Arthur Eddington, the first physicist to experimentally prove his ideas.
- DirectorStefano SollimaStarsBenicio Del ToroJosh BrolinIsabela MercedThe drug war on the U.S.-Mexico border has escalated as the cartels have begun trafficking terrorists across the US border. To fight the war, federal agent Matt Graver re-teams with the mercurial Alejandro.
- DirectorJonathan DaytonValerie FarisStarsSteve CarellToni ColletteGreg KinnearA family determined to get their young daughter into the finals of a beauty pageant take a cross-country trip in their VW bus.
- DirectorDaniel Petrie Jr.StarsJames GarnerKim CoatesMarlee MatlinA veteran FBI agent negotiates the release of a bus-load of hearing-impaired school-children taken hostage by 3 desperate escaped convicts.RedLetterMedia have talked a lot about "Geezer Teasers" lately. This is how you make one that's good. Provided the geezer in question is ready to act, of course. It's pretty tense and somehow action packed without Garner ever having to pretend he's younger than he is or that he hasn't had numerous knee-operations. He still comes off as his old self, in command of the situation, and mainly reliant on his wits to solve the problems at hand. It doesn't need a huge budget either. Just a neat concept and some solid acting, which this has.
- DirectorKen RussellStarsGabriel ByrneJulian SandsNatasha RichardsonThe Shelleys visit Lord Byron and compete to write a horror story.
- DirectorIain ForsythJane PollardStarsNick CaveSusie BickWarren EllisWriter and musician Nick Cave marks his 20,000th day on the planet Earth.
- DirectorLars MolinStarsEgon AnderssonFolke AsplundHans BredefeldtA major routine explosion is to be carried out at a power plant, but it does not work properly.Diskbänksrealism i gruvmiljö. Riktigt bra skådespelarinsatser och otroligt nagelbitande borrsekvenser (påminner mig om Werner Ziegler i "Better Call Saul"...)
- DirectorDavid FrankelStarsMeryl StreepTommy Lee JonesSteve CarellAfter thirty years of marriage, a middle-aged couple attends an intense, week-long counseling session to work on their relationship.
- DirectorMick JacksonStarsTommy Lee JonesJosef SommerEd LauterThis film tells the true-life story of Yuri Nosenko, a top Soviet KGB agent who defected to the West at the height of the Cold War in 1962.
- CreatorSam SheridanStarsChris PineIndia EisleyJefferson MaysIn early 1960s, a teenage girl looking for her real father and a disgraced journalist seeking closure find themselves drawn into a web of secrets revolving around L.A.'s most infamous cold case, the Black Dahlia (Elizabeth Short) murder.
- DirectorPatty JenkinsStarsGal GadotChris PineRobin WrightWhen a pilot crashes and tells of conflict in the outside world, Diana, an Amazonian warrior in training, leaves home to fight a war, discovering her full powers and true destiny.
- DirectorPeter SegalStarsSteve CarellAnne HathawayAlan ArkinMaxwell Smart, a highly intellectual but bumbling spy working for the CONTROL agency, is tasked with preventing a terrorist attack from rival spy agency KAOS.Dreary.
- DirectorÅke SandgrenStarsJesper SalénStellan SkarsgårdBasia FrydmanIn 1920s Stockholm, young Roland lives with his socialist father, Jewish mother, and boxer brother. His mother sells condoms illegally, and from them Roland makes slingshots, which he sells. His rebellious ways have won him his schoolteacher's special attention; his teacher always makes sure he is punished. Roland also tries to make extra money by repairing bicycles; it's a successful business, but it eventually lands him in hot water.
- DirectorNancy SavocaStarsRiver PhoenixLili TaylorRichard PanebiancoBefore leaving to fight in Vietnam, a group of teenagers play a game where they try to seduce the ugliest girl they can find.
- DirectorDavid MackenzieStarsChris PineBen FosterJeff BridgesToby is a divorced father who's trying to make a better life. His brother is an ex-con with a short temper and a loose trigger finger. Together, they plan a series of heists against the bank that's about to foreclose on their family ranch.
- DirectorGuillermo del ToroStarsMarisa ParedesEduardo NoriegaFederico LuppiAfter Carlos - a 12-year-old whose father has died in the Spanish Civil War - arrives at an ominous boys' orphanage, he discovers the school is haunted and has many dark secrets which he must uncover.
- DirectorHans AlfredsonStarsStellan SkarsgårdAllan EdwallLena NymanPettersson and Bendel are both worn, run-down and broke. Despite this they decide to start a business and become rich. Unexperienced they are open to any deal. They tamper, scam and exploit loopholes that exist.
- DirectorFilip HammarFredrik WikingssonStarsMikael PersbrandtHelena BergströmAgnes Lindström BolmgrenSet in 1984, Hans Pettersson (Hasse P.) decides to create the largest sandwich cake ever made in order to put his home town, Köping, on the map.
- DirectorTom MarshallStarsCiaran DowdJayde AdamsAriyon BakareWinner of the 2018 Edinburgh Comedy Award for Best Newcomer, Ciarán Dowd has adapted his critically acclaimed live show 'Don Rodolfo' as a Comedy Short. Don Rodolfo is a total butthead, a shameless libertine and the greatest swordsman the world has ever seen. Now barricaded inside a remote tavern, surrounded by the Catalan army and facing almost certain death, Rodolfo has 10 minutes to drink a bottle of Valdepañas and tell his epic tale...
- CreatorMichael CusackZach HadelStarsMichael CusackZach HadelMarc M.Follows employees of a small company dedicated to bringing happiness to a bizarre yet colorful world.
- DirectorJeremy SilberstonStarsDerek ThompsonBrenda FrickerCatherine ShiptonWhen a woman trips and falls downstairs, her husband blames the psychologically challenged neighbour.
- DirectorAlan WareingStarsDerek ThompsonIan BleasdaleJonathan KerriganA power cut hits A&E, leaving the department in darkness and Elliot struggling with his own private dilemmas. Meanwhile, Mark and George admit their mutual love. UKTV Play description)
- StarsEdvin EndreValter SkarsgårdAliette OpheimWhen a student at the famous boarding school Tuna Kvarn is found dead, investigators are met with a wall of silence.
- DirectorCosta-GavrasStarsCatherine AllégretJacques PerrinSimone SignoretThe witnesses of a train murder must take the investigation into their own hands if they want to survive.Watched in the middle of reading the book. Pretty good, even though the ending felt a little muddled. The fact that the detective has a cold never goes anywhere, but it doesn't in the book either.
- DirectorClaude SautetStarsYves MontandMichel PiccoliSerge ReggianiThree friends face mid-life crises. Paul is a writer who's blocked. François has lost his ideals and practices medicine for the money. The charming Vincent faces bankruptcy and his wife, from whom he's separated, wants a divorce.One of those meandering films where we get to know a bunch of people and follow them around during a slowly evolving crisis. A bit Cassavetes. Liked it.
- DirectorJeremy SimsStarsSam NeillMichael CatonWayne BlairA decades-long feud between two sheep farming brothers comes to a head when disaster strikes their flocks.
- DirectorDelbert MannStarsRichard ThomasErnest BorgnineDonald PleasenceA young soldier faces profound disillusionment in the soul-destroying horror of World War I.
- DirectorJames MacTaggartStarsIan HolmAnthony BateDeborah GrantWriting for ITV Saturday Night Theatre (1969), Dennis Potter introduced the notion that popular music expresses the yearning of the human spirit for a better world. A troubled young man, David Peters (Ian Holm), claims, "Once dreams were possible, that's what the popular songs told us." Rejecting rock music of the day, Peters is immersed in the tunes of Thirties crooner Al Bowlly (killed during the London blitz). He collects Bowlly memorabilia, publishes the Bowlly fan-club newsletter, and finds pleasure in lip-synching Bowlly records but his obsession with Bowlly masks certain darker events in his past.
- DirectorCharles SturridgeStarsIan HolmHelen MirrenNigel HaversA Russian in London finds himself targeted by British Intelligence.
- DirectorDavid HareStarsVanessa RedgraveIan HolmJudi DenchThe mysterious death of an enigmatic young man newly arrived in the suburb of Wetherby releases the long-repressed, dark passions of some of its residents.
- CreatorWilliam IvoryStarsAnthony HeadWarren ClarkeJenny AgutterAfter 15 years of living it up in the Costa Del Crime, ex-criminals Mo and Sid soon discover that everyday life is a far cry from the white-knuckle ride of a spot of breaking and entering.
- DirectorAbe LevySilver TreeStarsTed LevineSpencer Treat ClarkNick EversmanAfter a hunting accident leaves the town mayor dead, teenage brothers Nate and Skylar go on the run from the mayor's family, who have declared open season on them.
- DirectorCampbell ScottStanley TucciStarsTony ShalhoubStanley TucciMarc AnthonyNew Jersey, 1950s. Two brothers run an Italian restaurant. Business is not going well as a rival Italian restaurant is out-competing them. In a final effort to save the restaurant, the brothers plan to put on an evening of incredible food.
- DirectorShimon DotanStarsEllen BurstynGeneviève BujoldAmanda PlummerThis family drama examines a controlling mother through the eyes of her three deflated children, each of whom has sought therapy for the grief she's put them through
- DirectorDavid L. CunninghamStarsRobert CarlyleKiefer SutherlandCiarán McMenaminDuring World War II, four Allied POWs endure harsh treatment from their Japanese captors while being forced to build a railroad through the Burmese jungle.
- DirectorJoel SurnowChris GrossStarsPeta WilsonDon FrancksCindy DolencMr. Jones must leave Center's protection to thwart the sale of deadly biological weapons. Nikita seizes the opportunity to force him to tell her the truth about her recruitment into Section One.
- CreatorZarqa NawazStarsZaib ShaikhSitara HewittDebra McGrathA satirical view at a Muslim community living in Mercy, Saskatchewan, Canada.Some episodes in the first season. Pretty sweet and good-natured. A little tame, perhaps, but so were many sit-coms of the time (still are). Strikingly similar to the Swedish sit-com about the church, except that's even lamer.
- DirectorLee TamahoriStarsMorgan FreemanMichael WincottMonica PotterWhen a senator's daughter under Secret Service protection is kidnapped from a private school, detective Alex Cross investigates the case even though he's recovering from the loss of his partner.Very silly, but highly enjoyable in the noir-revival with some leeway of what's possible in the real world-sort of way.
- DirectorJulian SchnabelStarsJeffrey WrightMichael WincottBenicio Del ToroThe brief life of Jean Michel Basquiat, a world renowned New York street artist struggling with fame, drugs and his identity.
- DirectorDavid Von AnckenStarsPierce BrosnanLiam NeesonAnjelica HustonAfter the end of the American Civil War, a former Confederate colonel hunts down a former Yankee officer with whom he has a grudge.Sleeper of the year so far. I must re-evaluate Pierce Brosnan, it seems. This was a lot of fun and much, much more than I ever expected. Opening on a twenty minute escape through a beautifully shot snowy western landscape, with barely any dialogue... I loved it! This is one I'll definitely come back to many times.
- DirectorHasse EkmanStarsStig JärrelHasse EkmanElsie AlbiinAn out-of-work musician (Järrel) is desperate for work and when his best friend (Ekman) sees an add requesting a cellist he signs him up. However, the work is for a female, so he creates the character Märta Letterström and joins the trio at a small-town hotel. But being a woman is not as easy as you think.