What DVD have you just watched?

Hitchcock

Recommended to me by a friend, and he was right, this is a good film. The story of the making of Psycho is interesting in itself, but this film uses it as a vehicle to examine Hitchcock and his relationship with  wife Alma. A number of hares are set running and they are expertly managed as the film reaches its climax, on a number of fronts. Hopkins and Mirren are brilliant. Early on in the film Alma (Mirren) looks to Hitch for a small compliment, his reply is cursory, Mirren's depiction of being slighted is beautifully delivered; and this sets the stage for the central plot in the film.

One I will be re-watching.

M

Thanks for the recommendation Mr Underhill, I shall watch this. I was rather put off by the less than positive reviews but then I should know by now not to trust them too much.

Mr Underhill posted:

Hitchcock

Recommended to me by a friend, and he was right, this is a good film. The story of the making of Psycho is interesting in itself, but this film uses it as a vehicle to examine Hitchcock and his relationship with  wife Alma. A number of hares are set running and they are expertly managed as the film reaches its climax, on a number of fronts. Hopkins and Mirren are brilliant. Early on in the film Alma (Mirren) looks to Hitch for a small compliment, his reply is cursory, Mirren's depiction of being slighted is beautifully delivered; and this sets the stage for the central plot in the film.

One I will be re-watching.

M

Yes, Mr U. A mutual friend loaned me that DVD recommending it.  It would not have been the sort of movie that I would have self-selected but I enjoyed it. 

Mike

Tales of three completely different restaurants and the people who run them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPHaLkd4J28

Mr Underhill posted:

Jersey Boys

This is a great stage musical, even if you are at best luke warm about Four Seasons music. This Clint Eastwood directed and produced movie failed to get real traction when released, and having watched the movie I think I can understand why. The stage musical uses the music to tell the story in a fashion that is not linear and glazes over time and detail. The movie is probably more accurate, but in achieving this the music takes far more of a back seat. The group's biography is not without interest, but it is a story that has been told better and more engagingly in other films. This is a very workmanlike movie, but I think it was holed beneath the waterline by not concentrating on the music.

M

Can't speak to the stage musical, but as for the film I was disappointed as I have high expectations for a film from Clint. Yes, he has a legacy in musicals, has composed film scores, etc. But why choose this subject other than being a fan of the Four Seasons? For me the high point of Jersey Boys was the clip of Clint from "Rawhide" playing on the b&w TV in the hotel room.

Having caught one or two snippets of this on a Sky movies channel I thought I'd give it a proper view and bought the DVD (nicely cheap).  It kept me entertained. While I thought the story-line was promising it didn't really develop that well, and the comedy wasn't as good as I'd hoped.  Mind you, the movie does feature the very beautiful Olivia Wilde.  Overall I'd give it an 'ok' rating but no more.

Mike

Bought this a couple of weeks ago having seen a positive review on here by Mr Underhill and watched it this evening.  

Guy Richie's style shone through for me: the clever use of music to support the action (Blu-ray had excellent sound quality); the fast and snappily written dialogue, lines exchanged swiftly between the characters; and Guy's liberal use of classic cars.

I couldn't quite get used to Napoleon Solo's accent (kept reminding me of Hugo Weaving's Mr Smith in the Matrix series) but that didn't detract from my enjoyment.  I'd recommend this and I'll surely be watching it again.   

A Palestinian man blackmailed into a suicide mission in Tel Aviv gets a second chance at life when the fuse on his explosive vest fails to detonate and he has to spend another two days in the city waiting for a replacement switch.

Gianluigi Mazzorana posted:

tonym posted:

MDS posted:

Gianluigi Mazzorana posted:

A few years since I've watched that. Must dig out my DVD again.

I hope you watched the Director's Cut. The standard movie is poorly edited & cuts out the bits that make it logical. Great film!

 

I think i have the "supermarket" edition

I'll look for the DC.

Thanks!

You are right! Thanks a lot! The DC version is far way better than the dvd edition!

Haim Ronen posted:

A Palestinian man blackmailed into a suicide mission in Tel Aviv gets a second chance at life when the fuse on his explosive vest fails to detonate and he has to spend another two days in the city waiting for a replacement switch.

Haim, what film is this?

Re-watched Superman Man Of Steel last night as i was tired the first time and kept nodding off despite the effects & noise. I was fully awake this time but can see why it failed to keep my attention the first time round. It's an 'ok' movie, nothing more, nothing less. 

Richard Dane posted:

Haim Ronen posted:

A Palestinian man blackmailed into a suicide mission in Tel Aviv gets a second chance at life when the fuse on his explosive vest fails to detonate and he has to spend another two days in the city waiting for a replacement switch.

Haim, what film is this?

It is an Israeli film speaking in Hebrew and a little Arabic with English subtitles. It was co-produced with a German production company. It is not a masterpiece by far, and some elements of the plot are too simplistic to my taste, but never-the-less, it is worth watching, especially to an outsider who is far from sharing such experiences.

Nice rom romp 

Powerful and excellent cinematography, and that's just on my modest 40'' TV.  On the big scene it must be very dramatic.  Well worth seeing. As for mountain climbing, I think I'll stick to a tackling the North Downs. 

Nicely done film.

Saw yesterday the Wolf of Wallstreet - quite enjoyable.

Bert Schurink posted:

Saw yesterday the Wolf of Wallstreet - quite enjoyable.

Hyena would have been better choice.

Interm

Light and charming.

A plot that becomes more and more incredible but nonetheless great fun. Fast-paced and well scripted. I particularly liked the villain.  I've enjoyed most of the Mission Impossible series and I think might be the best. Recommended.  

We enjoyed this last night; a really terrific movie with some tense moments. There are no nice cosy police and lots of extremely unpleasant Mexican drug cartels. Serious stuff, beautifully filmed & with an atmospheric Atmos surround sound. 

I wouldn't associate emily Blunt with a film of this nature but she pulls the role off extremely well.

Recommended!

Tony, Sicario is the next one to be watched for me.  However, also about the Mexican drug cartels, last night I watched Matthew Heineman's Cartel Land.

Fascinating, and yet utterly frustrating too. You witness with dreadful foreboding the rise of vigilante groups determined to fight back against the drug cartels and corrupt police, who themselves begin to become like the very criminals they originally set out to fight. It portrays Mexico as a country where nobody trusts the state or the police and where poverty and proximity to the USA means there is no escape from the corrosion of corruption.

Geoffrey Macnab in his review for the Independent best summed it up in his opening paragraph;

Matthew Heineman's documentary about the Mexican drug wars plays like a real-life version of some grim Sam Peckinpah Western in which violence and corruption have become endemic.