What Non-New Films Have You Seen? (2020 Edition)

[Sebastian Cobb]

I watched that Snowpiercer. It was good, needed that after quite a few po-faced films.

[Custard]

Went to see The Dark Knight at the Odeon, as for some reason they're putting on a lot of Nolan films at the moment. Probably due to the lack of new releases, and Tenet being out soon

It was of course superb. Great, great film

[Small Man Big Horse]

Went to see The Dark Knight at the Odeon, as for some reason they're putting on a lot of Nolan films at the moment. Probably due to the lack of new releases, and Tenet being out soon

It was of course superb. Great, great film

What was it like being back at the cinema? And was it busy?

[Custard]

Heh, it was quite strange. Been so long!

My local Odeon is now all recliner chairs, and the bloke told my mate and I to sit one chair apart in there, but no one else was really doing so. There were probably about 15 people there, total. Probably about a quarter of that wearing masks

It was good, though it certainly did feel a little weird! I'd recommend people just go for it, as you can easily sit a metre or two apart from people, and it's not too hot to keep a mask on

[El Unicornio, mang]

Cruising (1980). One of the strangest films I've seen. Al Pacino is sent undercover in New York's gay bars to lure a serial killer. It was made a year before the AIDS epidemic and you really get a rare glimpse into the carefree debauchery going on in some of the bars at that time. There are some genuinely graphic moments including a fisting scene. Filmed by Freidkin in typical guerilla style, using real leatherman gay bars/patrons, many of whom sadly will have been lost to AIDS in the intervening years. But anyway, I love New York 70s/early 80s films so it's a treat to see it captured in all it's filthy glory, a New York that doesn't exist anymore.

This scene baffled me

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

There's also a great scene where Pacino does poppers and starts doing some sort of crazy dance

[Neomod]

S N O W P I E R C E R (2013)

A bit bobbins really. I can suspend my disbelief if the world is well realised but this didn't cut it for me. I guess the graphic novel it's taken from may work. Not read it.

Oh and why was Tilda Swinton channelling Eric Morecambe? Best thing in it.

94% Rotten Tomatoes... blimey!

[Small Man Big Horse]

Heh, it was quite strange. Been so long!

My local Odeon is now all recliner chairs, and the bloke told my mate and I to sit one chair apart in there, but no one else was really doing so. There were probably about 15 people there, total. Probably about a quarter of that wearing masks

It was good, though it certainly did feel a little weird! I'd recommend people just go for it, as you can easily sit a metre or two apart from people, and it's not too hot to keep a mask on

I'm glad you enjoyed it, and I really do want to go soon, but the idea of people not keeping masks on or sitting apart puts me off to be honest, it's really not too much to ask and I'm surprised given all the stories about how the cinemas were going to ensure people did so that only a quarter kept their masks on.

[Hand Solo]

Cruising (1980)

Try watching Crusing with headphones on, it's a real ASMR nightmare. All the juxtaposed cutting between loud club scenes and quiet moments with close mics where you can hear every single move Pacino makes due to his leather duds crinkling. I swear the leather is an actual protagonist in that movie, still gives me the fear thinking about it.

[Sebastian Cobb]

S N O W P I E R C E R (2013)

A bit bobbins really. I can suspend my disbelief if the world is well realised but this didn't cut it for me. I guess the graphic novel it's taken from may work. Not read it.

Oh and why was Tilda Swinton channelling Eric Morecambe? Best thing in it.

94% Rotten Tomatoes... blimey!

That's a coincidence! I thought it was alright. The comparison of 'High Rise on a train' seemed about right. Although I guess there isn't much plot for 2 hours of film and it's all a bit predictable. I'm interested in how they can build it up in the TV show though.

[Puce Moment]

That's a coincidence! I thought it was alright. The comparison of 'High Rise on a train' seemed about right. Although I guess there isn't much plot for 2 hours of film and it's all a bit predictable. I'm interested in how they can build it up in the TV show though.

I think of it more as The Raid on a train, given all the depth and psychological aspects of High Rise.

I'm glad you enjoyed it, and I really do want to go soon, but the idea of people not keeping masks on or sitting apart puts me off to be honest, it's really not too much to ask and I'm surprised given all the stories about how the cinemas were going to ensure people did so that only a quarter kept their masks on.

I couldn't agree more - it sounds like people are pulling the same shit they always have in cinemas. Being a cunt.

60" TV with cinema surround sound and access to torrents? Yes please.

[Small Man Big Horse]

I think of it more as The Raid on a train, given all the depth and psychological aspects of High Rise.

I couldn't agree more - it sounds like people are pulling the same shit they always have in cinemas. Being a cunt.

60" TV with cinema surround sound and access to torrents? Yes please.

Alas I'm a laptop and headphones person, and don't have the money (or space!) for a tv screen that big. Not that it bothers me most of the time and I enjoy watching tv and films this way, I think for me the desire to go to the cinema's tied in with just getting out of the house and spending time doing something that reminds me of the beforetimes. But yeah, there's no chance of that if people are going to be enormous selfish shits and cinema staff aren't going to kick them if they don't stick to the very simple rules.

[SteveDave]

I'm a huge fan of it as well,

Spoiler alert

and not just because Sophia Myles goes topless in it,

[close]

and like samadriel can't understand why it received such a negative reaction.

She looked like Laura Kuenssberg in it. Tits or no it was hard to shake.

[Sebastian Cobb]

The Alchemist Cookbook. Nice low-key comedy/psych horror done by the same director as Buzzard.

Pretty good.

[Neomod]

That's a coincidence! I thought it was alright. The comparison of 'High Rise on a train' seemed about right. Although I guess there isn't much plot for 2 hours of film and it's all a bit predictable. I'm interested in how they can build it up in the TV show though.

I think it was hearing about the TV show that prompted the watch. My problem was because the film wasn't engaging I started asking questions of the premise that weren't answered.

I've downloaded the first 3 eps of the TV show[nb]sucker for punishment[/nb] and on a cursory glance it follows the film including comedy northerner. I'm guessing new characters will be introduced and a mystery solved each week[nb]or not[/nb].   

Last Resort 2000
A mood piece and mundanely grim just the way I like it. It was only Paddy Considine's second film after A Room for Romeo Brass and he is a natural talent. Suitably understated performances all round and the sense of place, a seaside resort way past it's glory days in the dead of winter is quietly realised.

Oh and Arlington House is some great architectural porn for us admirers of the brutalist aesthetic.

[Custard]

Death At A Funeral (2007)
This was alright. Made me laff a few times. A British farce, as they say

Ingrid Goes West (2017)
Aubrey Plaza is obsessed with social media and stalks Elizabeth Olsen

Pretty decent, though I found the tone a little weird. One minute it's a dark comedy, the next it's a serious commentary on the effects of social media on people. The last 20 minutes are completely laugh free which jarred a little for me, and made the film feel a little wonky overall

That said, Plaza and Olsen are really good, and Ice Cube's son is very likeable and decent. Maybe the only likeable character in the entire film

Would give both films three buns each

[JaDanketies]

We watched schlocky horror Upgrade recently. It was a dumb little movie but it was very entertaining and was much better than I expected it to be. It even had twists and turns that I didn't see coming.

The premise is that a guy gets attacked by muggers and becomes a quadraplegic, and then gets a special implant that cures him, and then seeks revenge. Lots of entertaining fight scenes and deaths.

[Artie Fufkin]

Bus Stop - 1956

Marilyn Monroe in quite creepy misogynistic relationship.
It was fine. But the lead guy, Don Murray, was REALLY annoying. Though I guess that was the point?

[SteveDave]

Britannia Hospital

I enjoyed this and O Lucky Man but feel like I need to be a bit cleverer to get all the underlying things.

I was expecting Arthur Lowe to be the African dictator again. We spent most of the film going "Oh look it's him!" These people included Les the landlord from Men Behaving Badly and Pork Pie from Desmonds. As well as Luke Skywalker.

[Sebastian Cobb]

Last night I watched Prince Avalanche. It was alright I suppose, a couple of guys who just about tolerate each other end up being friends while working in a remote area. Some OK dialogue. Good soundtrack by Explosions in the Sky.

[Puce Moment]

JFK (1991)

I've been in a real 90s film mood recently, possibly because the gulf of time reaching two decades has given me some detachment and objectivity.

JFK - really this defines 'flawed triumph' in terms of factual storytelling, but it flings so much shit at the conspiracy that it hard not to get seduced by all the details, even when they are exaggerated or made-up.

It has that Stone lighting all the way through - overlit from above making everyone look like they are under a spotlight, regardless of their affiliations. The editing is remarkable, and looks especially modern to me. Incredible that this was basically shot in the 80s. Yes, the Donald Sutherland 'X' monologue scene is remarkably good. Pesci as Dave Ferrie leaps off the screen, everyone looks sweaty as fuck - even Sissy Spacek is good!

I love the amount of time and effort (and, frankly, cold hard cash) put into resetting Dealey Plaza back to its 1960s look. The effect is fantastic, allowing for Stone to do these wide shots of the whole area, showing how fucking SMALL the area is, and how obvious it would be that someone fired from the car park. The final courtroom scenes are really good - very dramatic, very well written, and even a little Seinfeld tie-in for those that like that sort of thing.

I don't really want to debate the truth/mistruths of the film, because that belongs on a different part of this forum, and has been combed over ad nauseum. Some of them are obvious - elements of Garrison's closing speech are taken from his writings, not the transcripts, and some of the received wisdoms do not survive scrutiny. The only one that causes a problem for me is the semi-montage scene around half-way through that uses the faking of the Oswald photograph as a strong visual element. It's one of my favourite moments in the film, even though it VERY likely was not faked at all.

Amazing film - Costner's best performance by some way.

[Shit Good Nose]

JFK (1991)

As a "factual" document goes it's mostly absolute bullshit - about the only correct facts in it are that JFK was assassinated and there were some dodgy CIA dealings going on.

But treat it as a fictional conspiracy thriller where the main subject happened to be a real person, it's an absolute masterpiece.  Easily my favourite Stone film.

For similar fictional conspiracy thriller framed around the JFK assassination, I can also HIGHLY recommend Executive Action.


RE the Oswald photo fakery - DEFINITELY not faked.  Several other photos from the same roll of film - which clearly show Oswald in the same clothes and holding the gun and newspaper in different positions - were made available some years ago.

[olliebean]

I watched a certain Seinfeld episode before I'd seen JFK, and without the slightest idea that they were sending up that film. When I eventually got around to seeing the film, my enjoyment of a particular scene was, shall we say, somewhat skewed.

[Puce Moment]

As a "factual" document goes it's mostly absolute bullshit - about the only correct facts in it are that JFK was assassinated and there were some dodgy CIA dealings going on.

This is a tough one for me because I have no horse in the race at all, beyond (I suppose) siding with cinema, and also siding with the Cubans. On that basis, it could be the CIA/Military, or the Cubans or the Mob or all three. I sort of don't care beyond what it means for telling the story. I think some of the shit Stone got was unjustified given the demands of filmmaking narrative - for instance, I think the Bobby assassination is inserted very neatly to move the plot forward in terms of the support Garrison receives. However, cinema does this all the time to tell stories, both fiction and non-fiction. However, given all the little nods and digs (there are tons of subtle ones that detract somewhat from the story), and the scope of the conspiracy presented, Stone was always going to have his script surgically examined. The 'truth' is a strong theme in the film, and that is something of a sword that Stone ultimately falls on. All the verisimilitude mean little if some of the most important columns supporting the narrative are baloney.

RE the Oswald photo fakery - DEFINITELY not faked.  Several other photos from the same roll of film - which clearly show Oswald in the same clothes and holding the gun and newspaper in different positions - were made available some years ago.

Yes, I looked this up as I had quite a recent memory of this being debunked. Turns out it was 2015, and the conclusion is 'it's not doctored'. I never really understood the importance of that, beyond the propaganda side of things. Oswald did far more obviously and objectively suspicious things that count against him, not least making it clear that he desired to renounce his U.S. citizenship.

[Shit Good Nose]

This is a tough one for me because I have no horse in the race at all, beyond (I suppose) siding with cinema, and also siding with the Cubans. On that basis, it could be the CIA/Military, or the Cubans or the Mob or all three. I sort of don't care beyond what it means for telling the story. I think some of the shit Stone got was unjustified given the demands of filmmaking narrative - for instance, I think the Bobby assassination is inserted very neatly to move the plot forward in terms of the support Garrison receives. However, cinema does this all the time to tell stories, both fiction and non-fiction. However, given all the little nods and digs (there are tons of subtle ones that detract somewhat from the story), and the scope of the conspiracy presented, Stone was always going to have his script surgically examined. The 'truth' is a strong theme in the film, and that is something of a sword that Stone ultimately falls on. All the verisimilitude mean little if some of the most important colums supporting the narrative are baloney.

I suppose it's easy these days - with everything a quick Google search away - to debunk pretty much all of what Stone presented as fact both in the film and his accompanying commentary.  The magic bullet is a classic - so much time over so many years spent on that, and a key part of the film, VERY easily and quickly explained by the unusual layout of that car, something that, in the pre-internet days, only the manufacturer, car experts and anyone who had read the Warren report in full would have been aware of.

[Puce Moment]

Yes, that is easily the most pompous aspect of the trial scene because he is so sure, and so sneering about the story offered by the Government.

I am going to tentatively invoke Occam's Razor to suggest that, amongst all of this, someone in power was lying about some of this. I think one of the problems of Stone's film is that he really does throw so much shit at the whole thing. I have to assume that he just assumed that the right bits of plop will stick even if the misfires fall to the floor to turn white in the sun. The problem with this is that whomever this or they are, they must have been delighted to see so many of these misfires which offer perhaps an even more powerful smokescreen around the story.

In any case - worra film! In particular the use of super 8 when showing flashbacks to the day itself are so effective. Parts have dated - particularly all the people coming into the courtroom at the end so that Garrison felt all cosey and supported. I quite like when Spaceck comes into the courtroom with their son JUST before he is about to show the Zapruder footage. I mean, it is as if they BRING him in to watch it. And then we see the headshot multiple times ""Back and to the Left. Back and to the Left. Back and to the Left. Back and to the Left."

Cheers Pops!

[rjd2]

The Selfish Giant 2013 (Clio Barnard)

Its on film4 site for free for another few weeks and its very good. Two poor kids in Bradford steel scrap metal to get by when suspended from school. Its only 85 mins long also!

Plenty of relatively well known faces in the background Ian Burfield,Ralph Ineson, Siobhan Finneran and Steve Evets.

https://www.channel4.com/programmes/the-selfish-giant

[rjd2]

Night Of The Hunter -1955

I'm pretty late on this sadly, but this blew me away. Despite been 65 years old its still quite scary. Robert Mitchum as the evil fanatical preacher is incredible. The rest of the cast all pretty good, but obviously overshadowed by Mitchum. It's got a Gothic vibe visually and so many arresting images mainly including Mitchum.

Mt fav scene, obviously best to avoid if you have not seen it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-N9LnkKQfuc

I really need to see the Mitchum version of Cape Fear.

[Pearly-Dewdrops Drops]

The Vast of Night (2019)

Watched this based off the recommendation of Red Letter Media. Very fun and a quite impressive example of low-budget filmmaking. Sort of has the ambiance of the 1950s New Mexico scenes from Twin Peaks: The Return.

Spoiler alert

Only thing I didn't like were the TV set framing/interstitials, which seemed a little unnecessary

[close]

. I would not recommend watching the trailer as it shows you the entire fucking movie.

[phantom_power]

Going through a bit of a PTA phase at the moment.

Hard Eight is a great debut, showing signs of the filmmaker he would become but still a bit rough around the edges. Really good central performances (Even Gwyneth) and a fairly tight, low-stakes plot

Boogie Nights is his first of many masterpieces. Probably his flashiest film, with a fair few long takes and tracking shots. Wahlberg is uncharacteristically brilliant and the cast of characters are so real and lived-in. A surprisingly sweet film given that it is follows the fortunes of a load of porn stars and producers. They are really just a fucked-up family. Reminiscent with Goodfellas with the rise and fall aspect and the cranking up of misery in the second half, culminating in that tense-as-fuck scene with Alfred Molina, but it has enough of its own DNA to not feel too much like a rehash

I also watched Phantom Thread recently, which I wasn't expecting to like but loved. His films have this knack of defying expectation and classification. It is much funnier than I expected and the places it goes are so unexpected and, for want of a better word, brave. He swings for the fences with every film

[Artie Fufkin]

The Royal Tenenbaums - 2001

Second time I've watched this, the first around about the time when it first came out.
I was hoping I'd prefer it this time, but still didn't totally get into it. Although I thought Gene Hackman was brilliant.
Not my fave Anderson film by any means, but enjoyable enough to get 3.5 from me (0.5 for Gene alone).