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| bartist |
 Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2020 12:31 pm |
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Joined: 27 Apr 2010
Posts: 6958
Location: Black Hills
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Quote: The Midnight Sky had real potential to be interesting but George Clooney finally made me a believer about his deficiencies as a director....
Though I didn't praise Midnight Sky, I didn't think it pointed to Clooney as deficient in directing. This is the guy who directed Good Night and Good Luck, and The Ides of March, and other worthy films. OK, maybe Suburbicon was a dropped ball, but I think of Clooney as a pretty good director. I do agree with that reviewer about the "halfhearted backstories" and, as I mentioned, the cliches. And I disagree that the twist at the end was "silly, " I just thought viewers of a recent film (mentioned between my spoiler brackets) would be likely to anticipate it. But I don't regret the two hours I gave up to watch. |
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He was wise beyond his years, but only by a few days. |
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| gromit |
| Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2020 2:32 pm |
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Joined: 31 Aug 2004
Posts: 9010
Location: Shanghai
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Odd that I never even heard of The Ides of March, as I'm a Clooney (the actor) fan and I was watching a lot of films at that time. Ides has quite a cast, which makes it all the stranger that I completely missed this.
Good Night, and Good Luck is well done, but also pretty straightforward without tone changes. I could watch that again. |
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Killing your enemies, if it's done badly, increases their number. |
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| bartist |
| Posted: Wed Dec 30, 2020 8:49 pm |
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Joined: 27 Apr 2010
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Location: Black Hills
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You saw The Ides of March and reviewed it, back in 2011, as did others here. (if you search it, exclude all the posts Syd does every March 14, reminding us to beware...) I cannot seem to cut/paste between open tabs on the tablet I'm using atm.
Wait, got it to work. Here's the Gromit of Jan. 14, 2012...
Quote: Beware The Ides of March -- it isn't that good. I really never believed that Gosling was a hotshot political consultant. A problem is that we are frequently told that he is good, but we don't see anything. He has one idea that he tells his candidate, and frankly it's kind of dopey and oversold. He just doesn't look or seem the part. And then what we see is him making a series of dumb decisions, mistake after mistake (meeting with Giamatti, both telling and not telling his boss, banging the intern). But he's some hotshot political genius. Hmmm.
Also the Clooney candidate never came into focus. Mostly he says a bunch of idealistic platitudes. And doesn't seem to have a clear identity. Also a number of the major premises seemed weak. The GOP is said to be in disarray, so everyone is sure that whoever wins the Dem primary will be the next president. And senator giving his endorsement will shift his delegates and is decisive.
Only Giamatti and Hoffman seemed convincing, and then only half the time. The direction is pretty uninspired and the music cues were annoying. Really all the characters and relationships seemed a bit sketched in.
Okay, I'm a bit harsh. The film is decent enough for a cable watch. But really the intrigue just isn't that intriguing. There's no reason to really care about anyone in the film. or to care which politician or which consultant comes out ahead. |
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He was wise beyond his years, but only by a few days. |
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| gromit |
| Posted: Thu Dec 31, 2020 12:32 am |
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Joined: 31 Aug 2004
Posts: 9010
Location: Shanghai
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You know, I read the summary on wiki and had a vague feeling maybe I did see it, but I couldn't recall a thing or have any visual recollection. And the title is too generic. And the cover they showed is definitely not the one I had. I do remember dvd covers from years of sifting through racks of unorganized dvd's.
Possibly it never registered that Clooney directed the film, which might have been a reason to remember it
It is funny that there are plenty of films I remember nothing about.
Which makes me an ideal candidate to rewatch films. There's even plenty of thrillers where I don't recall the twist. Now, films that I liked or engaged with, I do tend to recall.
I just watched The Paper Chase the other night. And like Fiddler on the Roof, I was reasonably certain I'd seen it before, but not only was the film not remotely familiar, but it was very different than my vague impression of what it would be like. Unfortunately a lot of the film revolved around the unlikely romance with the professor's daughter, played by a rather wooden Lyndsey Wagner. And it was over-long.
I think what I recall is the 1978 Tv series of the Paper Chase, which i saw some of as a newly minted teenager. |
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Killing your enemies, if it's done badly, increases their number. |
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| carrobin |
| Posted: Thu Dec 31, 2020 1:18 am |
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Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 7795
Location: NYC
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| Although I remember "The Ides of March" pretty well and liked it, I also have what I call "TCM syndrome"--watching old movies and trying to figure out if I've seen them before. Sometimes the movie is half over before something happens that turns on the light--oh yeah, I remember that Edward Everett Horton bit! |
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| gromit |
| Posted: Thu Dec 31, 2020 2:02 am |
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Joined: 31 Aug 2004
Posts: 9010
Location: Shanghai
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| Moving some Ides of March talk to Couch. |
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Killing your enemies, if it's done badly, increases their number. |
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| gromit |
| Posted: Tue Feb 16, 2021 2:32 pm |
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Joined: 31 Aug 2004
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Location: Shanghai
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| Ghulam |
| Posted: Sun Feb 21, 2021 4:22 pm |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 4742
Location: Upstate NY
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Bravura performance by Frances McDormand in "Nomadland", an idyllic depiction of the warm and adventurous experiences of several middle-aged and elderly men and women living as nomads in some western states. Sensitively directed by Chloé Zhao, who also gave us the remarkable "The Rider" in 2017.
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Mon Feb 22, 2021 7:11 am |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 20618
Location: New York City
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| I was just a tad underwhelmed by "Nomadland," which is nailing the kind of press that makes you fear you're missing the cinematic experience of a lifetime if you skip this very good but less-than-mindblowing film. I much preferred Zhao's "The Rider." |
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| bartist |
| Posted: Mon Mar 15, 2021 3:08 pm |
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Joined: 27 Apr 2010
Posts: 6958
Location: Black Hills
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Have seen very few of the Oscar noms -- Nomadland, Judas & tBM, Chicao 7, all planning to catch before the April awards. Disappointed to see Mank lead in nominations, though it further confirms Hollywood self-absorption. Or as Whiskey put it, at Elba, "Hollywood clearly loves being fellated. "
The Father has some good perfs I'm sure, but I've skipped it, perhaps due to the feeling I've seen Anthony Hopkins do all this before. Then again, maybe this is a good dementia-with-daughters double feature if paired with "Proof. " |
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He was wise beyond his years, but only by a few days. |
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Mon Mar 15, 2021 4:07 pm |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 20618
Location: New York City
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| bartist--I've seen Hopkins a lot, so much that I avoided "The Father" at first. Finally saw it, and I've never admired Hopkins as much (well, maybe in "The Silence of the Lambs," but never since). He is astonishing, and my choice as Best Actor of 2020. |
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Mon Mar 15, 2021 4:08 pm |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 20618
Location: New York City
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Best of 2020:
1. Minari
2. Promising Young Woman
3. Sound of Metal
4. Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
5. Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
6. I Care a Lot
7. Circus of Books
8. Judas and the Black Messiah
9. The Father
10. Never Rarely Sometimes Always
I would definitely list "Psycho Ape!" somewhere in there. One of the ten funniest movies I've ever seen. But since I play a leading role in it, I can't legitimately go there. Just know that "Psycho Ape!" would be in the top five were I not in it myself.
In any case, "MinarI" is best of the year by miles and miles. I'm somewhat disappointed that eight-year-old Alan Kim was not nominated as best supporting actor. He's actually my favorite in that category in one of the most wonderful child performances I've ever been entranced by.
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| bartist |
| Posted: Mon Mar 15, 2021 8:12 pm |
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Joined: 27 Apr 2010
Posts: 6958
Location: Black Hills
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Thanks for the nudge towards The Father, Mr Weed. Adding that, and Minari, to the list.
Ma Rainey -- we did some forehead smacks, realizing it's on our streaming and we hadn't yet seen it, so that's on the list.
I Care a Lot -- I'll probably see this solo, as comedy that shade of black tends to induce squirming in my sigboth, and my other film copains are in other time zones atm.
Psycho Ape is my second viewing when my Amazon sub starts. Apparently relentless hectoring works! Who knew? (well, our cats, for starters...) |
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He was wise beyond his years, but only by a few days. |
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| Syd |
| Posted: Mon Mar 15, 2021 9:56 pm |
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Site Admin
Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 12921
Location: Norman, Oklahoma
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| I trust everybody remembered to Beware the Ides of March, or is it too late? |
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I had a love and my love was true but I lost my love to the yabba dabba doo, --The Flintstone Lament |
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| billyweeds |
| Posted: Tue Mar 16, 2021 7:15 am |
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Joined: 20 May 2004
Posts: 20618
Location: New York City
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bartist wrote: Thanks for the nudge towards The Father, Mr Weed. Adding that, and Minari, to the list.
Ma Rainey -- we did some forehead smacks, realizing it's on our streaming and we hadn't yet seen it, so that's on the list.
I Care a Lot -- I'll probably see this solo, as comedy that shade of black tends to induce squirming in my sigboth, and my other film copains are in other time zones atm.
Psycho Ape is my second viewing when my Amazon sub starts. Apparently relentless hectoring works! Who knew? (well, our cats, for starters...)
All of the above constitute time well spent. "I Care a Lot"--despite that awful title--has been unfairly overlooked at awards season. Rosamund Pike in particular is brilliant. |
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