Last Seen Movie - The Latest Movie You Have Seen; ratings

[Precious Doll]

Kaleidoscope (2017) Rupert Jones 4/10
Tully (2018) Jason Reitman 4/10
The Boys from Feng Kuei (1983) Hsiao-Hsien Hou 7/10
Cute Girl (1980) Hsiao-Hsien Hou 4/10
The Green, Green Grass of Home (1982) Hsiao-Hsien Hou 4/10
55 Steps (2018) Bille August 4/10
Antiporno (2017) Sion Sono 4/10

Repeat viewings

The Touch (1971) Ingmar Bergman 4/10
The Reckless Moment (1949) Max Ophuls 6/10
Cannery Row (1982) David S. Ward 7/10
The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith (1978) Fred Schepisi 7/10
Caught (1949) Max Ophuls 6/10
Becket (1964) Peter Glenville 6/10

[Precious Doll]

Unsane (2018) Steven Soderbergh 4/10
The Misandrists (2017) Bruce La Bruce 5/10
The Insult (2017) Ziad Doueiri 7/10

Repeat viewings

The Silver Chalice (1954) Victor Saville 5/10
The Rainmaker (1956) Joseph Anthony 6/10
The Green Ray (1986) Eric Rohmer 8/10
Easter Parade (1948) Charles Walters 6/10
Sorry, Wrong Number (1948) Anatole Litvak 6/10
Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974) Martin Scorsese 6/10
Sleeping Dogs (1977) Roger Donaldson 2/10
Slacker (1991) Richard Linklater 7/10

[Sabin]

/Being John Malkovich/ (1999) Spike Jonze 10/10
Wrote a blog piece about this recently then deleted it. Ultimately, the place for my thoughts is here, I think. I don't know if BJM plays better today than when it first debuted in 1999, but it takes on a whole new meaning. Or rather, its original meaning becomes more clear. It's a devastating portrait of male ego. I could go on about all the choices that I adore about this film. Mike D'Angelo makes an excellent point about how completely, hilariously random many elements are. For example, so many of the choices are thematically purposeful, but they're immediately followed by something random. Malkovich tunnel: purposeful. New Jersey Turnpike: random. But today in the #MeToo era, Being John Malkovich plays like the ultimately portrait of a disempowered man. Look at Craig's final fate: he's forced to live inside the daughter of two women, looking at this burgeoning Matriarchy for years to come. He's pathetic and he's condemned. Meanwhile, Lotte is the ultimate snowflake. She pays the rent by healing the trauma of animals. She gains power through questioning her gender. In Being John Malkovich, there's nothing more powerful than a snowflake on a search for meaning...and I love that.

There are times when I think THIS (not Eternal Sunshine...) might be Kaufman's magnum opus. For instance from a writing perspective, he spends the entire first act laying out this love triangle. Imagine if Craig didn't find the Malkovich portal? He might then read a book on pick-up lines, right? Instead, he finds the Malkovich tunnel, which is totally incidental. But the players have been set in motion. From then on, everybody in the film is relentlessly pursuing something (or somebody) else in a journey ripe with discovery and betrayal. The reveal of Captain Merton gets a demerit or two in my book for being just a little too silly. But the lines of reggies shelling out bucks just to be somebody else for a few minutes... well, it's the new app. It's just another thing, invading somebody's privacy, and nobody really cares. They're just mindless drones lining up. Admittedly, it's a bit facile, and Jonze and Kaufman wisely background it to the love triangle.

Never loved this film more than I do today. Best of 1999.

[Precious Doll]

Loving Pablo (2017) Fernando Leon de Aranoa 4/10
Aurore (2017) Blandine Lenoir 5/10

Repeat viewings

All This and Heaven Too (1940) Anatole Litvak 6/10
The Model Shop (1969) Jacques Demy 6/10
For Ever Mozart (1996) Jean-Luc Godard 6/10
Sideways (2004) Alexander Payne 10/10
The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) Michael Curtiz & William Keighley 6/10
That Cold Day in the Park (1969) Robert Altman 7/10
Portrait of Jennie (1948) William Dieterle 6/10
Forty Guns (1957) Samuel Fuller 6/10
Angel of Vengeance/Ms. 45 (1981) Abel Ferrara 7/10
Angel Baby (1961) Paul Wendkos 6/10
Monty Python's The Meaning of Life (1983) Terry Jones 5/10
Black Sunday (1977) John Frankenheimer 5/10
Rachel, Rachel (1968) Paul Newman 7/10
Das Boot (1981) Wolfgang Petersen 8/10 (208 minute director's cut)

[Reza]

La Muerte de un Ciclista / Death of a Cyclist (Juan Antonio Bardem, 1955) 9/10

A couple, involved in an illicit affair, knock down a cyclist on an isolated road and drive on after seeing he is hurt but alive. He is a Professor (Alberto Closas) and his mistress (Lucia Bosé) is the wife of a rich man (Otello Toso). Their relationship begins to deteriorate when the cyclist is found dead and the woman is blackmailed by an art critic (Carlos Casaravilla) who is part of their social circle. Bardem creates an atmosphere of intrigue, dread and fear - which was a swipe at the oppressive Franco regime in Spain at the time. This was was one of the early Spanish films to detract from Franco's vision of cinema and Bardem mixes neo-realism with thriller elements from Hollywood. The tense mood is straight out of Hitchcock - Will the lovers be caught? Will the blackmailer succeed? Will her husband discover the truth? Will the couple have a pang of conscience and turn themselves in? Bardem flirts with all these dilemmas leading up to an ironic if melodramatic end which appears to have been the result of the harsh censors at the time. The actors are all superb with Lucia Bosé a standout playing the cold selfish woman who is clearly more in love with her social position than with the two men who flank her life - her lover and her husband. The film is a marvel of production design and superb camerawork which captures the characters different moods using deep focus and glaring close-ups. Classic film and a must-see.

[Reza]

A Million Ways to Die in the West (Seth MacFarlaine, 2014) 5/10

MacFarlaine spoofs the Old West but he's no Mel Brooks as the film's tepid jokes make obvious. A cowardly sheep farmer (Seth MacFarlaine) is dumped by his girlfriend (Amanda Seyfried) for a rich dandy (Neil Patrick Harris) and then falls in love with a sexy cowgirl (Charlize Theron) who is the wife of a black clad murdering bandit (Liam Neeson). His best buddy (Giovanni Ribisi) is a virgin in love with a hooker (Sarah Silverman) who refuses to have sex with him. Slapstick nonsense allows Theron to show her comedic skills although MacFarlaine's character is too obnoxious and the jokes, although coming fast and furious, are somewhat stale and lifted from other movies and tv shows from the past.

[Reza]

Frontera (Michael Berry, 2014) 7/10

It's always a pleasure to see Ed Harris on screen. He is a stately presence and one of the best character actors on screen. A prank results in the accidental death of a woman (Amy Madigan) and an illegal Mexican immigrant (Michael Peña) - he crosses over into Arizona - is accused of killing her. Matters take a turn for the worst when his wife (Eva Longoria) crosses over too, gets molested and arrested. The dead woman's husband (Ed Harris), a former lawman, tries to solve the mystery. The plot is ripe with melodramatic contrivances but the fine cast underplays and director Berry brings wonderful gritty quality to this modern oater with lovely scenes shot on dusty orange plains as Harris rides on a horse, eyes squinting, cheeks hollow and deep voice whispering out his dialogue.

[Reza]

Avengers: Infinity War (Anthony & Joe Russo, 2018) 6/10

This is the greatest hits version of the Avengers - everyone and their french poodles get to appear - as they band in groups to combat the evil Thanos (Josh Brolin) who is collecting six coloured "infinity stones" (don't ask...) to fit into his glove which will make him all-powerful. It's Marvel comics so we go along with this shit as written. Loki (Tom Hiddleston) is the first to tangle with Thanos in outer space. With New York under attack we quickly get to see the Avengers pairing up - Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) - who seems to be having the equivalent of erectile disfunction because he has trouble transforming into the angry green giant - Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) discussing pregnancy with Pepper (Gwyneth Paltrow) and trading quips with Spider-Man (Tom Holland). Meanwhile in Scotland - Vision (Paul Bettany) and the Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) are attacked by the cadaver-like henchmen of Thanos and to their rescue come the Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson), Captain America (Chris Evans) and Falcon (Anthony Mackie). In space the Guardians of the Galaxy (Chris Pratt, Zoë Saldana and their assorted companions) and Thor (Chris Hemsworth) battle it out with the "big man on campus". Wakanda gets a look-in with Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman) and his tribe where a major battle - shades of "Zulu" and "The Lord of the Rings" - is fought with most of the Avengers including War Machine (Don Cheadle) joining in. Too many cooks crammed into the film as they stir the broth which goes on and on from one battle to another with a number of major characters getting killed as Thanos manages to get his glove filled with the infinity stones. The film ends on this somber note with a post-credits scene where Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) manages to send a distress signal thus leading the story into an epic sequel promised for 2019. This film is bigger, darker but repetitious with it's non-stop scenes of battle and mayhem making it terribly monotonous and instantly forgetable.

[Reza]

The Man in the Net (Michael Curtiz, 1959) 7/10

A man is caught in a "net" - a bad marriage which segues into a manhunt when he is accused of murdering his wife. Old fashioned melodrama is satisfying despite the potholes in the plot. A successful Madison Avenue advertising executive (Alan Ladd) chucks in his job, moves to the countryside and starts a fresh life wanting to be a painter. He also wants to get his wife (Carolyn Jones), a dipsomaniac, away from the big city where she suffered a nervous breakdown. The marriage collapses because his flighty wife wants the rich life, wants to move back to the city and creates an image in the community that she suffers spousal abuse. When she mysteriously disappears the townfolk form a lynch mob headed by a sleazy cop (Charles McGraw) forcing the husband to go on the lam. Helping him hide and solve the mystery are five children who have befriended him and a sympathetic friend (Diane Brewster). Ladd gives a lifeless performance sleepwalking through the role - he was only 46 at the time but looks 60 and tired and would die a few years later at age 50. Jones has a flamboyant role playing a drunk floozie and seems to be giving a Bette Davis impersonation from the camp classic "Beyond the Forest" - one sympathises with her stuck in a dull marriage to the stone-faced Ladd. Striking camerawork by John Seitz who sets up noir-like shots.

[Reza]

Sirocco (Curtis Bernhardt, 1951) 6/10

Once upon a time there was a place called Casablanca where everybody came to Rick's Cafe - the locals, the expatriates and even the occupying Nazis - and the owner stuck his neck out for nobody. This film also has an exotic backdrop - Damascus in 1922 during the French occupation of Syria. A gunrunner (Humphrey Bogart), who sticks his neck out for nobody, supplies ammunition to the Syrian rebels barely keeping one step ahead of the law headed by a French cop (Lee J. Cobb). When he falls in love with the cop's mistress (Märta Torén) matters come to a head - should he escape with her or help the cop hookup with the rebels to broker peace. The film scores major points for creating the correct Middle East atmosphere although shot on the Paramount backlot - the old Damascus alleyways, citadel, underground tombs, the cafe where everyone gathers for drinks - but the screenplay is a letdown as it tries desperately to invoke memories of Bogart's previous classic. Here he plays a slipshod version of Rick and while Torén does not have the mystery of Ingrid Bergman she is quite attractive in her own right and plays well opposite Bogart. The film's best performance is by Cobb who mercifully underplays throughout as the relentless but humane cop hoping to find a solution to all the violence around him. The film is beautifully shot by Burnett Guffey who would go on to win two Oscars for "From Here to Eternity" and "Bonnie and Clyde".

[Reza]

Paratrooper / The Green Beret (Terence Young, 1953) 4/10

Standard B actioner about a British parachute training school with a Canadian (Alan Ladd) joining up and locking horns with a bunch of Brits played by Leo Genn, Stanley Baker, Donald Houston and Harry Andrews who all go through the motions with every cliché intact in the screenplay. Albert R. Broccoli produced and a number of his team here - director Young, screen-writer Richard Maibaum, cinematographer Ted Moore and stuntman Bob Simmons much later joined up for the Bond films.

[Reza]

Hell on Frisco Bay (Frank Tuttle, 1955) 4/10

Stale revenge drama with a cop (Alan Ladd) who comes out of jail and seeks the man who framed him. The film is stolen by Edward G. Robinson as the sociopath racketeer who thumbs a finger at the cop. Joanne Dru is decorative as a torch singer while Fay Wray makes a comeback as a has-been actress in love with the crook's stooge (Paul Stewart). Ladd is typically tough but stiff throughout.

[Reza]

Crisis (Richard Brooks, 1950) 7/10

Underrated political thriller with one of Cary Grant's rare dramatic performances. An American doctor (Cary Grant) on vacation in a Latin American country with his wife (Paula Raymond) gets caught up in a revolution against the country's President (José Ferrer). The couple finds themselves kidnapped and brought to the palace to perform brain surgery on the corrupt ruler who may die without the operation. Doctor's dilemma - to save or not to save - along with the revolutionary leader (Gilbert Roland) urging him to let slip the scalpel. The film gets the full MGM treatment with the corrupt ruler and his ambitious wife (Signe Hasso) clearly modeled on Argentina's Juan and Eva Perón. Grant is very good in a straight dramatic role although one critic quipped that he looked ill at ease and would rather be holding a martini instead of a scalpel in his hand. Interesting to see two stars from MGM's silent era - Ramon Novarro and Antonio Moreno - in supporting roles. Richard Brooks wrote the screenplay and made his debut as director with this highly charged political melodrama. A great start to a distinguished career.

[Reza]

The Caretaker (Clive Donner, 1963) 8/10

Film version of the acclaimed absurdist play by Harold Pinter with all three actors from the Broadway production repeating their roles. Low budget film was partially financed by a host of film and theatre personalities - Richard Burton, Peter Sellers, Leslie Caron, Peter Hall, Noel Coward, Elizabeth Taylor. Claustrophobic drama set in a cramped room full of clutter where three men indulge in powerplay games. A feeble minded man (Robert Shaw) invites a tramp (Donald Pleasence) into his apartment and offers him a job as a caretaker. His brother (Alan Bates), on the other hand, shows contempt for the derelict and taunts and harrasses him. Superbly acted by all three stars as they get to speak Pinter's monologues ranting and railing against life in general. Starkly photographed by Nicolas Roeg.

[Reza]

Rampage (Brad Peyton, 2018) 7/10

Summer appears to have arrived early with this popcorn movie in spring. Hollywood has no originality and here joins together bits and pieces from "King Kong", "Jurassic Park" and assorted other monster-on-the loose flicks from all over the place and comes up with yet another man-against-the-beast roller coaster ride. Man is a primatologist (Dwayne Johnson) who has raised an albino gorilla - they communicate through sign language. When a genetic experiment goes awry and the pathogen infects the primate all hell breaks loose as he gets aggressive, starts growing and develops extra strength. Two cartoonish evil scientists hold the antidote and it becomes a race against time to stop the rampaging gorilla from destroying Chicago. Adding to the chaos are a wolf and an alligator also affected by the pathogen. As the trio descend on the Windy City and start destroying it - shades of 9/11 - the army, our hero and a discredited geneticist (Naomie Harris) try to save the day. Over-the-top film does not let up with various exciting set pieces along the way - the gorilla getting loose on an airplane and causing it to crash, the three beasts climbing up a skyscraper, assorted narrow escapes and an amusing homage to Kong with a delightful twist involving the evil "beauty" who gets clasped in the giant paw of the alligator. This ridiculous premise never lets up with unbelievable action sequences that come at breakneck speed. Dwayne Johnson is his usual tongue-in-cheek self and easily carries off this nonsense on his massive shoulders trading quips with the primate while fending off the most death defying situations. Naomie Harris is equally game as the plucky heroine while Jeffery Dean Morgan is a hoot as the self styled cowboy and full-time government goon who comes to the rescue while drawling dialogue like John Wayne on speed. Great fun if instantly forgettable.