Recent Viewings

[ulthar]

The last few weeks have been very hectic and it has taken a toll on our movie habit.  But, here's what we have managed to squeeze in since the week or so before Thanksgiving (not counting children's titles):

ORIGINAL SIN (2001)

Antonio Banderas and Angelina Jolie in a black-widow type story.  I fell asleep but my wife liked it.


A BRIDGE TOO FAR (1977)

War epic with a great ensemble cast chronicles Operation Market Garden, one of Bernard Montgomery's failed attempts at beating the Germans quickly.  One thing I thought about watching this movie was how come you don't really see that many ensemble cast movies anymore.  I mean, the depth of characters in BRIDGE gave it not only richness and made it interesting to watch, but also underscored the scope of this operation.

I contrast this with (goofy) attempts at depicting a large battle like PEARL HARBOR that utilizes only three main characters (okay, so I know the attack was not the focus of this movie, but was only backdrop).  You also have THE PATRIOT with only a couple of main characters.  One thing watching A BRIDGE TOO FAR made me think was that lack of lots of characters makes movies about epic stories just too focused.

SECRETARY (2002)

We both really enjoyed this movie.  My wife called it a "Cinderella story told in a wierd way."  In its own way, it was sweet and very engaging.   I give this one a recommendation if you haven't seen it.

LOCK, STOCK AND TWO SMOKING BARRELS (1998)

Guy Ritchie's first and an energetic outing it was.  I liked the twists and turns and there was some downright tension and dark humor.  For this style of flick, I think Guy Ritchie has become one of my favorite directors.  (I also liked SNATCH, a similarly themed and paced movie).

Getting back into some Bad Movies, now.  Next up on the queue are:

DINOSAURUS!
SESSION 9
THE CORPSE GRINDERS (I gotta bite the bullet...been putting it off too long, and 'tis the season to be, uh, nevermind)
BELLY OF THE BEAST
DRACULA HAS RISEN FROM THE GRAVE
BY DAWN'S EARLY LIGHT

[Yaddo 42]

Secretary is great, an adult fairy tale is how I usually describe it. I like your wife's description better, these two warped people find each other and find love as a result, their fetishes complimenting each other. He "saves" her from herself, and she gives him a willing outlet for his desire for domination and sadism.

Lock, Stock, and .... is a fun favorite, although I now think Ritchie is a bit of a one trick pony, camera tricks and smartass caper comedy, Swept Away and working with his wife did him no favors. I like this film better, Snatch is a cool film with some great moments, but LSATSB is fresher and funnier to me. The scene with the man on fire running out of the bar, and the guys walking in anyway sums up why I love this film.

Can you imagine how much it would cost get equivalent big stars to be in a film like A Bridge Too Far if you made it these days? So-so film, kind of a last gasps of old-style epic filmmaking before special effects replaced old-fashioned spectacle and huge casts of famous faces.

[RCMerchant]

The CORPSE GRINDERS!?!? Be afraid...be VERY afraid!

[BoyScoutKevin]

Actually, I'd like to see more ensemble films, but with how much top actors get paid today, the cost of most ensemble films is prohibitive.

[raj]

I remember coming out of the theater when A Bridge too Far came out; I was thinking "but. . . but. . . we lost"  I thought it was strange that they made a movie in which our side lost.

[Yaddo 42]

Isn't the "we lost the battle" situation why they had the launch of Doolittle's raid sequence at the end of Pearl Harbor? Can't send the audience out of the theater bummed out these days.

Wasn't the hubris and folly of the Allied leaders, the poor planning and supply, and the senseless waste of lives and resources kind of the point of ABTF? It wasn't The Longest Day, and it was in the post-Vietnam era, so films about a lost battle or a hollow victory make a bit more sense.

[ulthar]

Wasn't the hubris and folly of the Allied leaders, the poor planning and supply, and the senseless waste of lives and resources kind of the point of ABTF? It wasn't The Longest Day, and it was in the post-Vietnam era, so films about a lost battle or a hollow victory make a bit more sense.

In this regard, the chilling line from ABTF for me was when "Boy" was telling Sean Connery's character what Monty said about the operation: 90% Successful.

If Montgomery really said that, that speaks volumes for HIS mindset after nearly 20,000 allied troops were killed in an ill-conceived, overblown pipe-dream to 'defeat the Germans before Christmas."

One of the weird things about this movie, though, is the music.  It plays like one of those rah-rah Gooo Allies 1950's WWII movies, but the story does not follow that at all.  From the music, I kept waiting for a 'happy' turn, but it did not come (of course).  Maybe this juxtaposition of music to visual was on purpose, to further underscore that hubris and the enormity of the failure?

[Scott]

One of my favorite WWII films. Possible Top Ten.

[Flangepart]

Wasn't the hubris and folly of the Allied leaders, the poor planning and supply, and the senseless waste of lives and resources kind of the point of ABTF? It wasn't The Longest Day, and it was in the post-Vietnam era, so films about a lost battle or a hollow victory make a bit more sense.

In this regard, the chilling line from ABTF for me was when "Boy" was telling Sean Connery's character what Monty said about the operation: 90% Successful.

Good points.
The scene with the Tanks on "The wide part of the road" was the first clinker in the works, for the British armor. The U.S. 82nd and 101st did well, but the 1st Para, the Red Devils, were the tragic core of the loss. A big part of it, was the bad radio communications the Paras had. If they could have gotten through, they could have called in adjusted supply drops,and  Typhoons to rocket the German Panzers, and maby that would have given them the edge they needed.


One of the weird things about this movie, though, is the music.  It plays like one of those rah-rah Gooo Allies 1950's WWII movies, but the story does not follow that at all.  From the music, I kept waiting for a 'happy' turn, but it did not come (of course).  Maybe this juxtaposition of music to visual was on purpose, to further underscore that hubris and the enormity of the failure?

I noticed that too. The music was a counterpoint. And very annoying, cause it was the only major theme they played! A bit of thematic variation, movie, please?