What DVD have you just watched?

For the 2nd time after ten years or so - Nine Queens (Nueve Reinas)

Things We Lost in the Fire

Assassin's Creed

While I pride myself on having a very low quality threshold for enjoying a film, this went too far. At some point, our lead asks himself 'What the f@& is going on?' and all I could think of was why it took him so long to get to that point.

Even if you know the games on which it is based and the concept of the time machine is clear, the characters' motivations are all over the place and extremely vague. And if you don't have a passing knowledge of the games, add a completely nonsensical story to the mix.

Fassbaender is listed as a producer; but what were Cotillard, Irons and Gleeson doing in this turkey?

Avoid at all costs...

EJ

Hidden Figures

Watched this after visiting the prototype shuttle Enterprise on the Intrepid in NYC, which spurred a refresher on NASA's Mercury, Apollo and Space Shuttle programs. Wonderful feel good film about three strong women with just the right amount of humour, reflection, intelligence and guts to forge a career at NASA against a background of racial segregation in 1960s Virginia and the fear of losing the space race.

EJ

The Lost City of Z

Biodrama about British explorer Percy Fawcett, who went to Brazil on a survey expedition and ended up looking for El Dorado. Despite good reviews I wasn't very impressed - be prepared for a leaden paced, flat and dreary narrative with an almost exclusive focus on the hardships of travel in the jungle, non-inclusive behaviour of the lords and ladies back home, and Fawcett's other misfortunes. 

Cheers,

EJ

Not for the faint-hearted. This is grim but powerful.  Western war movies aren't like this. 

The film set in India and Australia, is based on the a non-fiction book written and based on the life of Saroo Brierley. The story tells the tale of a 5 year old boy who in search of food with his brother, lands up losing his way from home traveling all the way to Kolkata. Sheltered in an orphan age he gets adopted by an Australian couple and in adulthood through means of Google Earth goes on a journey to find his parents in India.

A classic from 1957:

In the Guy Ritchie style but without the humour.  Ray Winstone is particularly menacing.  

On Netflix DVD  The Desert of Forbidden Art,  a Russian artist knew some of the early modernists which were suddenly out of "style" with Stalin.  He started collecting them and found many in barns, attics, and used as insulation.  Jaw dropping paintings. He conned the current regime in an small museum far away and they now have all of them.

For Scifi  , plus the 2nd DVD of interviews, it is based on the latest scientific theories string theories and relativity.

Yes, it's old. Yes, I've watched it many times before. But it's such a brilliant film I always enjoy watching it again.

A mess of a film, possibly even more confused, superficial and vapid than the social media it warns against or encourages, or this short review.

MDS posted:

Yes, it's old. Yes, I've watched it many times before. But it's such a brilliant film I always enjoy watching it again.

Prescient. Of course, Kubrick, for all his genius, couldn't possibly have foretold the level of incompetence that we are now dealing with.

Highly recommended. The documentary of the making of the album. The album itself is a real gem.

winkyincanada posted:

MDS posted:

Yes, it's old. Yes, I've watched it many times before. But it's such a brilliant film I always enjoy watching it again.

Prescient. Of course, Kubrick, for all his genius, couldn't possibly have foretold the level of incompetence that we are now dealing with.

Yes, Winky. The current surreal political climate was in part the prompt for me digging it out again.  Indeed I could almost imagine a certain Western leader, whose name we must no longer mention on here, advocating as a Communist plot a scheme to impurify our water and bodily essences.   

My favourite science fiction film, remastered in 4K HDR with Dolby Atmos soundtrack. Gobsmackingly wonderful! The colours and details fairly pop out at you and the Atmos surround's about the best I've heard.

As controversial today as it was fifty years ago. Hard to watch at times but still mesmerising. 

A Monster Calls

This was a film I wanted to see at the cinema but missed, now on Amazon Prime.

The movie centers on a boy whose mother is suffering from a serious illness, and his attempts to cope with this; as well as the divorce of his parents and bullying at school.

I found this a very moving piece. These is a reasonable amount going on but it is not telegraphed, the film expects a degree of active watching and is the better for this.

Recommended.

M

Kingsman: The Golden Circle

I have seen Kingsman compared to James Bond many times, I think a better comparison would be an updated 'The Man from UNCLE'; it incorporates much of the silliness of that franchise. That said I am very much in two minds about this film. I did enjoy it, but I feel that despite having a servicable story, good action and lead actors there is something rotten in the state of Denmark.

This film carries a 15 certificate. It is uses the F word gratuitously. At one point a young woman offers to allow one of the leads to urinate on her. One sex scene was unnecessarily explicit. However, it is not completely morally bereft, for reasons I will allow you to find out for yourselves. Finally the character of the President of the USA is interestingly written, making a noteworthy decision that within a different film might be interesting and plausible, within the context of this lightweight fluff I am left feeling uncomfortable.

What is it that we want younger members of society to aspire to and believe?

M

A friend of mine was raving about the stage show of this, and I realised I'd never actually seen the film. It's funny, good natured, big-hearted and much, much more enjoyable than I'd expected it to be. Jack Black was actually quite likeable in it too, rather than simply being annoying.

Very good, it is.

Killing Bono

Despite the title this is an affectionate breeze through the very early days of the boys.  Based roughly from real events ( apart from trying to kill Bono - although I'm not that sure )  Great casting and great Irish humour.

Mr Underhill posted:

A Monster Calls

This was a film I wanted to see at the cinema but missed, now on Amazon Prime.

The movie centers on a boy whose mother is suffering from a serious illness, and his attempts to cope with this; as well as the divorce of his parents and bullying at school.

I found this a very moving piece. These is a reasonable amount going on but it is not telegraphed, the film expects a degree of active watching and is the better for this.

Recommended.

M

Yes, an intelligent and entertaining film.

See also "Where the Wild Things Are" for another great take on a similar theme. To paraphrase the director, Spike Jonze "It's a film about childhood, not a children's film". It was panned a bit on release, but I loved it.

The City of Lost Children: A fascinating movie. The pairing of Jeunet & Caro magical on this little gem of a film. In some ways overshadowed by Delicatessen, but I think this is the more interesting and inventive film.