Welcome back to another week of the BEST & WORST edition of 'what movies did you see last week?' thread. For those who haven't been part of it before, basically your host (me) posts my weekly movies and you can comment on those and list your movie for the same time frame. I will get back to you on yours and you can talk to other users here about their films. It's a great place to talk about film.
Pretty good week of viewing for me overallÂ
FIRST TIME MOVIE VIEWING
Outland (1981, Peter Hyams)
For some reason I thought I had already seen this but I think I was conflating it with Moon 44 (1990). Sean Connery (James Bond) plays a federal marshal who is stationed at a mining colony on the Jupiter moon of Io where he uncovers a drug-smuggling conspiracy. He gets no help from the workers or authorities when he finds himself marked for murder.
The production value and direction is great and it feels like it exists in the same universe as the original Alien (1979) which it surely took some inspiration from with its future realism. However here they have used it as a setting for a re-imagining of the classic western High Noon (1952).
In the end we get a film with a great atmosphere with good performances and fun set pieces. It may be too slow in some places for modern audiences but I sure enjoyed the heckfire out of this.
7.5-8/10
The Incident (1967, Larry Peerce)
This is a surprisingly gritty and well put together film with an all star cast that mostly takes place in one subway car travelling into New York City. It came out seven years before the also excellent The Taking of Pelham One Two Three but seems to have been somewhat forgotten. It marks the film debut of Martin Sheen (Apocalypse Now) a long with a host of other great character actors such as Thelma Ritter (Rear Window), Brock Peters (To Kill a Mockingbird), Ruby Dee (A Raisin in the Sun), Beau Bridges (The Descendants) and many more.
The film touches on many themes of fear, racism, homophobia, violence, classism etc. but ne ver feels preachy and it all serves the story which is something modern films could take a lesson from. Some parts could have done with some tightening up for pacing but for the most part this is a film that should have more eyeballs.
7.5-8/10
The Set-up (1949, Robert Wise)
This film noir has an unusual setting with most of it taking place in a Boxing changing room as we follow Robert Ryan (On Dangerous Ground) who plays an ageing boxer on a night that will change his life. The direction and performances are superb and this was the highest rated noir I had not seen and I am glad it did not disappoint, not even the boxing scenes which I assumed would be bad but they were better than many shot in the decades since.
7.5/10
This Gun for Hire (1942, Frank Tuttle)
This film stars Alan Ladd and Veronica Lake who became film noir icons and this along with The Blue Dahlia (1946) are their best. It's a really nicely made film with creative set pieces and easy to watch.
7/10
Blast of Silence (1961, Allen Barron)
This film is often cited as the last true noir even though it was released just outside the official period (1940-59). It was a truly independent production and started filming in 1959 but ran out of money and was finished in 1960 and finally got distribution in '61. The film follows a hired killer from Cleveland who has a hit to do on a second-string mob boss in New York. However he does not bank on either a special girl from his past or a fat gun dealer with pet rats getting in his way.
The film obviously has a lot of noir traits but has more of an independent spirit and goes further than studio pictures of the day would venture. Not surprisingly Martin Scorsese has sung its praises and it is obvious when watching it that it is a huge influence on his film Taxi Driver (1976).
6.5-7/10
The Strange Affair of Uncle Harry (1945, Robert Siodmak)
This is quite a strange film which stars a favourite of mine George Sanders (Rebecca) who is paying against type here but is still very watchable. He plays Harry who has a very controlling sister as well as a new romantic interest in his life. Unfortunately there was some studio interference with the end of the film as well as with complying to the then stringent Film Code which really kind of kills the films story.
5.5/10
The Glass Key (1942, Stuart Heisler)
This is another of the Alan Ladd, Veronica Lake film noir pictures but I found it very disappointing and is easily my least favourite of their combined films. The story is a real muddle and it was a bit of a chore to stay focused enough to make the viewing worth while. Ladd and Lake are both good but it is just a bit of a dud in my books.
4/10
Us (2019, Jordan Peele)
After comic actor Peele's success with directing the horror Get Out (2017) he is pack with another horror film, this time a family's serene beach vacation turns to chaos when their doppelgängers appear and begin to terrorize them.
I enjoyed the first 45 minutes which were well crafted with good character moments and some good tension but then as soon as the doppleganger's turn up, the film turns to crap. From that point on it has zero tension, poor action, no scares, hoakie mythology and is just a chore all the way to the end.
3/10REPEAT MOVIE VIEWING
Goodfellas (1990, Martin Scorsese)
blu ray
This biopic of the gangster Henry Hill is a very well constructed film with a lot of fun scenes. I prefer the gravitas of The Godfather to these but this is very watchable and a fun watch.
9/10
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse (2018, Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey)
UHD
This animated film is stunningly realised and easily the greatest Spider-man film and one of the greatest superhero films.
8/10
Peggy Sue Got Married (1986, Francis Ford Coppola)
blu ray
This high concept film is fun and well made but does drag in parts. Kathleen Turner (Serial Mom) is great as always and is surrounded by a strong supporting cast.
6./10
FIRST TIME TV SERIES VIEWING
The Victim (2019, Season One)
This four part British series sees a mother who seeks the whereabouts of her son's killer after he is released from prison, unleashing a series of events that surface tragic memories and unexpected consequences.
Highly Recommended
Dawson's Creek (1998, Season One)
I had no idea this late 90's teen series about four friends in a small coastal town who help each other cope with adolescence would be so littered with movie references.
It is easy to watch and switch off your brain.
Recommended
WEEKLY FILM AWARDS
BEST FILM: Goodfellas
BEST ACTOR: Ray Liotta - Goodfellas
BEST ACTRESS: Kathleen Turner - Peggy Sue Got Married
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Joe Pesci - Goodfellas
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Lorraine Bracco - Goodfellas
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: Milton R. Krasner - The Set-up
BEST SCORE: Jerry Goldsmith - Outland
BEST SCRIPT: Nicholas Pileggi, Martin Scorsese - Goodfellas
BEST EDITING: Thelma Schoonmaker - Goodfellas
BEST DIRECTOR: Martin Scorsese - Goodfellas
10/10 - Perfection (or as close to it as possible)
09/10 - An Excellent film
08/10 - A VERY Good film
07/10 - A Good film
06/10 - A Solid film
05/10 - An Average film
04/10 - Below Average film
03/10 - A mostly bad film
02/10 - A mostly terrible film
01/10 - Awful through and through
00/10 - Not only awful but offensive too
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