Search

Search only in certain items:

And Now My Love (1974)
And Now My Love (1974)
1974 | Drama, Romance
(0 Ratings)
Movie Favorite

"I’m trying not to go the obvious route, but I do love Citizen Kane and I can’t leave that off here. It’s an incredible movie and the story’s told in this ingenious way and I never get tired of looking at it. It’s like visual fireworks and the sound is incredible — everything about it. But if I had to watch a movie that means something to me — and I did see it in my childhood — it’s And Now My Love by Claude Lelouch. It is a story told over the 20th century that is told stylistically as a history of film, so the film style changes throughout. It starts off in silent movie and goes through cinema verite and goes through everything. The gimmick is it’s the story of love at first sight and you follow two family lines through the couple meeting. It was very influential on me in many ways; it’s got a lot of the highlights and influences of European cinema. It’s about a criminal and a spoiled brat who belong together, and it also has a bigger thing which is that you’re learning the story of the 20th century. Its depiction in particular of the 1960s, definitely had an impact on me in terms of how to portray an intimate experience in the midst of history. I saw it in a second-run movie theater. All those movies were being released in the United States and they would end up on the weekend in double features and I can tell you right now, I was 12 years old when it was in the theater and I went back and saw it. It’s super-romantic. It’s got this incredible depiction of France and it’s got this great love story and it’s really ingenious. All the themes with reference to film style and film genre. One of the characters actually turns out to be a filmmaker. It’s incredible."

Source
  
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)
2017 | Action, Comedy, Sci-Fi
Funny (2 more)
High Adventure
Fast paced
Select elements of the storyline (0 more)
Hilarious
So many times the movie trailers show all the funny lines and then you end up disappointed once you finally see the movie. Not with this one. This movie had the entire theater laughing, young and old, from start to finish. It's amazing to me that they can actually continue to develop the characters in this fast past and at times ridiculous adventure but they somehow do.

The only part that seemed a bit out of place was Kurt Russell's character. Throwing him in there suddenly as dad, and a shallow and self-absorbed at that, just seemed a bit out of place. Of course it did create the dramatic opportunity for our Guardians to save the Galaxy so it did serve a purpose. Had this character been just a bit more developed I would have given the movie a "perfect" rating.
  
Baby Driver (2017)
Baby Driver (2017)
2017 | Action, Comedy
Great Music (3 more)
Amazing Acting
Amazing Driving
Jon Hamm
Fast Paced, Adrenalin Pumping Movie
If you are going to see one movie this summer, make it this one. When you going to the theater do not be late, because the first 6 minutes of this movie are flat out fast paced and amazing. After the opening credits nothing slows down.

The best part of this movie though is how they incorporate the music into the movie. Every time Baby is on the screen and wear his headphones, we not only hear the music in his head but we can feel the way it plays into the scene. Because of the ringing in his ears he needs the music to balance himself out and stay focused. This plays a big part towards the end of the movie.


This movie from front to back is nonstop and has an interesting story to follow. Every person should go see this movie, then own it.
  
40x40

Erika (17789 KP) rated Alita: Battle Angel (2019) in Movies

Feb 18, 2019 (Updated Feb 18, 2019)  
Alita: Battle Angel (2019)
Alita: Battle Angel (2019)
2019 | Action, Fantasy, Sci-Fi
The fight/action scenes (0 more)
Everything else (0 more)
This movie was on the borderline between good and just ok, I rounded up. I was irritated because the theater where I have the subscription with was only showing the film in 3D. I'm not a huge 3D fan, and don't think anything is really added by it.
I know James Cameron was supposed to be the main draw, but I think he's pompous, and Avatar is not a good movie (IMO/it's lame and a snore). I was there mainly for Robert Rodriguez, he's a BFD here.
Essentially, it's Ghost in the Shell with a different story around it. I loved the fight/actions scenes, I was riveted by those. But, everything around it was kind of lame with bad dialogue and an unnecessary love story.
I also hated that it left on a cliffhanger. The movie drastically under-performed, leading to the worst Presidents' Day box office in the US since 2004. Likelihood of a sequel? Slim to none.
  
Fantastic Four (2015)
Fantastic Four (2015)
2015 | Action
A Lost Piece of Hope
Where do I even begin with this trainwreck of a movie. I never walk out of a movie. I never turn a movie off if I don't need to. If anything, I'll never watch it again. This movie when I saw it at the theater back in 2015, was almost that 1 movie to do it. I had to grip my seat just to stay seated and not leave. From a slashed budget leaving bad effects to some that don't look done. To a bad story, bad acting and apparently a horrible production with a director who claimed to have a better cut that the studio didn't want to go with. It's absolutely no wonder this film was garbage. I wouldn't recommend this to someone I really hate. The only torture this film could do is bore you to death. Don't see this if you haven't. If you have, I'm sorry.
  
TM
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
When Eli Marks looks into the projection booth of the theater next door late one night, the last thing he expects to see if the projectionist dead on the floor of the locked booth. Against his will, he finds himself involved in the case and interviewing the eccentric suspects. But which of them is a killer? And how did they pull off the crime?

This is a wonderful mystery with the added locked room element. I had no clue where the book was going, but I couldn’t believe I didn’t figure it out when the clues and killer were presented at the end. The eccentric cast of suspects are fun, and the series regulars are great as always. Eli’s job as a magician is a great hook that makes this series stand out from the others.

Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2017/05/book-review-misers-dream-by-john.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
  
A Season for Fireflies
A Season for Fireflies
Rebecca Maizel | 2016 | Young Adult (YA)
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
A Great YA Read
A lot has changed in the past year for Penny. She has quit theater, and made a new set of friends. When she is struck by lightning she loses all memory of the last year, and is confused by the changes in her life. Now she most win back her old friends, and try to piece together the time she lost.
This story was done fantastically. It would have been easy to make either Penny's old or new friends unlikable. Instead all of the characters are complex, and have reasons behind there actions. Penny herself struggles with coming to terms with decisions she doesn't remember making. She has to figure out how to get her old friends back when they no longer speak to her, and she isn't sure why. This book also has some romance, however it is Penny's character development that truly makes the story shine.
  
The Assistant (2020)
The Assistant (2020)
2020 | Drama
The Assistant is a thinly-veiled Harvey Weinstein inspired film... Funny how it didn't get as much attention or promotion as Bombshell.
This film was quiet, and follows an assistant of a film producer, who is never shown on screen. She performs monotonous tasks, attempts to eat (though, she always ends up throwing out the food - if you're a lowly assistant low on money, you don't pitch food), and gets lectured by her coworkers and boss. She sees indications that her boss is a dirt bag, but when she attempts to report these concerns to Mr. Darcy (Matthew MacFadyen), they're not really taken seriously.
The theater was about a quarter of the way through, and I was probably the youngest person there. One of the elderly gentlemen said in a loud voice, "That's it?" It was definitely a frustrating ending, but that was very much true to life, so I thought it was fitting.
  
40x40

EasterBunnyKiller (31 KP) rated Truth or Dare (2018) in Movies

Jul 31, 2019 (Updated Jul 31, 2019)  
Truth or Dare (2018)
Truth or Dare (2018)
2018 | Horror, Thriller
My wife wanted to see this, because she loves Lucy Hale. Having seen parts of it from working in a movie theater, I knew it wasn't goin to be great, but I decided to bite the bullet and rent it.

I'm glad I used the points I accrued from my Redbox rentals instead of spending actual money to see it. It was exactly what I expected, a movie about young, attractive, and utterly milquetoast characters bumbling from scene to scene and a marginally interesting hook for why the bad thing is out to get them.

The acting is fine, and it's not terrible visually, but this movie lacks any kind of soul. Just your basic Friday night junk food horror flick. And don't get me wrong, I love junk food. But it's the difference between potato skins from TGIFridays and those terrible TGIFridays potat skin flavored chips.

Of course, my wife loved it.