All Things Movie/Documentary Reviews/Recommendations Thread

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I bought into the buzz and went out to see Cocaine Bear. Kind of a let down. Just OK.

I do like Keri Russell in it though.
 

John Wick 4 is fucking wild! Best action movie I've seen since The Raid 2. It could probably trim a few minutes (coming in at almost 3 hours long), but I really didn't notice the runtime much at all.
 

This is why I don’t even bother with movies anymore. They aren’t movies. They’re amusement park rides.

Cocaine Bear?
John Wick … 4?
Seventy millionth Comic Book movie

Good god
 

Gophers_4life said:
This is why I don’t even bother with movies anymore. They aren’t movies. They’re amusement park rides.

Cocaine Bear?
John Wick … 4?
Seventy millionth Comic Book movie

Good god
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the world has definitely changed. the smaller or lower-budget movies have pretty much moved to the streaming channels, with a few exceptions like some of the horror movies from Blumhouse or some of the A24 movies.

as a result, the movie theatres are largely reserved for the bigger budget IP including comic book movies and the big action or sci-fi movies and sequels. I know that I rarely go to movies in the theatre any more. If there's something I really want to see, I can rent it online. But that is not a reflection on the quality of movies - it's more that I'm older and I'd rather watch a movie at home with my own snacks, and where I can pause the movie if I have to take a whizz.
 

Gophers_4life said:
This is why I don’t even bother with movies anymore. They aren’t movies. They’re amusement park rides.

Cocaine Bear?
John Wick … 4?
Seventy millionth Comic Book movie

Good god
Click to expand...
I wouldn't classify Cocaine Bear as an amusement park ride, at least no more than the first Jaws.

I wasn't all that high on it (pun intended), but there were elements I thought were original. Just the fact it was not a sequel scores points in my book. It's a popcorn movie.

Cocaine Bear is not Jaws quality (nor was it striving to be), but in the ballpark of the original Scream.
 
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We went and watched Air tonight, absolutely loved it. Great acting and casting, amazing story and so well done. The audience cheered in the theater when it was done.

For those that watch it, see if you can spot a factual/timing error the movie made as it relates to Wheaties.

My guy Arthur Ashe plays a role, and I learned that George Ravling has the actual copy of MLK’s “I have a Dream” speech which is bonkers.

Go Air!!
 

for "Star Wars" fans, some news from the 'Star Wars Celebration' event in London.

Lucasfilm has announced plans for 3 new Star Wars movies
1. a movie to be directed by James Mangold that will explore the origins of the Jedi order and the Force.

2. a movie directed by Dave Filoni that will bring together characters and plot lines from multiple TV series including the Mandalorian, Ahsoka, and the Book of Boba Fett.

3. a movie bringing back Daisy Ridley as Rey - set some years after 'The Rise of Skywalker' and dealing with Rey trying to re-establish the Jedi Order.

disclaimer - they have announced other Star Wars projects that never happened, so probably have to take this with a grain of salt until the movies actually go into production.
 

Gophers_4life said:
This is why I don’t even bother with movies anymore. They aren’t movies. They’re amusement park rides.

Cocaine Bear?
John Wick … 4?
Seventy millionth Comic Book movie

Good god
Click to expand...
Don't sleep on John Wick. One of the only modern action hero series we have. And the 4th entry is brilliant.
 

Nax5 said:
Don't sleep on John Wick. One of the only modern action hero series we have. And the 4th entry is brilliant.
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Sure.

And I enjoyed the Dark Knight, quite a lot. (Jayzus, 15 years ago now??) Did not enjoy the sequel. And am generally disgusted about how comic book movies have taken over since then. But there can be exceptions (like I mentioned DK).
 



Gophers_4life said:
Sure.

And I enjoyed the Dark Knight, quite a lot. (Jayzus, 15 years ago now??) Did not enjoy the sequel. And am generally disgusted about how comic book movies have taken over since then. But there can be exceptions (like I mentioned DK).
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Understandable. I've fallen off the comic book universes for the most part. Everything for MCU led up to Endgame in 2019. I will say it was definitely a novel movie-going experience to see Iron Man (2008) when it came out, and conclude that decade-long journey with Endgame. It was really a unique time in movie history, and I'm not sure if anything will recreate it. But I have been feeling the burn-out since then.
 

Creed III was good.

I can't say it's great as it's a similar story arc as the pretty much all of the other 8 movies in the franchise, but still likable. Interesting that Stallone is completely absent on screen and only barley referred to in the plot.

It's Michael B Jordan's directing debut, looking forward to what he can do with a completely original story. Very promising.
 
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Ope3 said:
Creed III was good.

I can't say it's great as it's a similar story arc as the pretty much all of the other 8 movies in the franchise, but still likable. Interesting that Stallone is completely absent on screen and only baring referred to in the plot.

It's Michael B Jordan's directing debut, looking forward to what he can do with a completely original story. Very promising.
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I had a similar impression. Good entry. But doesn't quite reach the greats. The action scenes were heavily influenced by anime that Michael B Jordan watched growing up. And that gives it a unique aesthetic that really refreshes the scenes in the boxing ring.

It was definitely a more personal Creed story, so I can understand Rocky's absence. But it was still a bit awkward to work around.
 

Nax5 said:
I had a similar impression. Good entry. But doesn't quite reach the greats. The action scenes were heavily influenced by anime that Michael B Jordan watched growing up. And that gives it a unique aesthetic that really refreshes the scenes in the boxing ring.

It was definitely a more personal Creed story, so I can understand Rocky's absence. But it was still a bit awkward to work around.
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Yes, on the boxing scenes. It felt like we were really in the ring. Also agree on the absence of Balboa, it likely would have clunked down the story (which was essentially a hybrid origin story for Adonis).
 



BleedGopher said:
We went and watched Air tonight, absolutely loved it. Great acting and casting, amazing story and so well done. The audience cheered in the theater when it was done.

For those that watch it, see if you can spot a factual/timing error the movie made as it relates to Wheaties.

My guy Arthur Ashe plays a role, and I learned that George Ravling has the actual copy of MLK’s “I have a Dream” speech which is bonkers.

Go Air!!
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I had forgot about your Wheaties comment while watching the film so I wasn't looking for it, but somehow they knew in 1984 that a certain team was going to be World Champions 3 years later.

Agree on the film, way more levity and in jokes than I expected. Bad haircuts (though factually accurate). Also great use of music/soundtrack to transport the audience back to the 80s.

Interesting to think how it played out for Nike Golf & Tiger Woods. Worked out for all concerned with the apparel, not so much with equipment.
 

Ope3 said:
I had forgot about your Wheaties comment while watching the film so I wasn't looking for it, but somehow they knew in 1984 that a certain team was going to be World Champions 3 years later.

Agree on the film, way more levity and in jokes than I expected. Bad haircuts (though factually accurate). Also great use of music/soundtrack to transport the audience back to the 80s.

Interesting to think how it played out for Nike Golf & Tiger Woods. Worked out for all concerned with the apparel, not so much with equipment.
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Good eye on the Wheaties box!! I'm sure most will never catch that...always funny when movies do little errors like this.

There's a scene in Hoosiers in the first practice when Coach Norman Dale is running his drills, and after the two kids left practice, that some of the drills magically have 6 players in it even though only 5 were on the team at that time.

Go Gophers!!
 

BleedGopher said:
Good eye on the Wheaties box!! I'm sure most will never catch that...always funny when movies do little errors like this.

There's a scene in Hoosiers in the first practice when Coach Norman Dale is running his drills, and after the two kids left practice, that some of the drills magically have 6 players in it even though only 5 were on the team at that time.

Go Gophers!!
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I caught that in Hoosiers as well.

I can't remember where I saw it (maybe an interview with one of the actors on the Dan Patrick Show), but apparently there was a scene with somebody coming back that was edited out for time purposes.

In Air I thought they were using dramatic license with Barkley/Stockton going in the same 1984 Draft, but that was actually correct.
 

Ope3 said:
I caught that in Hoosiers as well.

I can't remember where I saw it (maybe an interview with one of the actors on the Dan Patrick Show), but apparently there was a scene with somebody coming back that was edited out for time purposes.

In Air I thought they were using dramatic license with Barkley/Stockton going in the same 1984 Draft, but that was actually correct.
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Nope, the 1984 draft was absolutely insane.
 

Frink said:
Nope, the 1984 draft was absolutely insane.
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Looking at 1985 that was crazy as well, with Ewing, McDaniel, Mullin, Schrempf, Malone and Dumars.

Wayman Tisdale also had crazy talent, was just as much of a star on the 1984 Olympic Team, from what I remember.
 

Saw a really late showing of Evil Dead Rise tonight...

Obviously it's balls-to-the-wall carnage. But does perhaps have some message of motherhood in all the despair.

Fun movie in the end.
 

BleedGopher said:
We went and watched Air tonight, absolutely loved it. Great acting and casting, amazing story and so well done. The audience cheered in the theater when it was done.

For those that watch it, see if you can spot a factual/timing error the movie made as it relates to Wheaties.

My guy Arthur Ashe plays a role, and I learned that George Ravling has the actual copy of MLK’s “I have a Dream” speech which is bonkers.

Go Air!!
Click to expand...

This popped up in my UTUBE short feed (MJ on Letterman) -

- YouTube

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.
youtube.com youtube.com
 

Air was great.

Also watched Vengeance with BJ Novak. This was a very unique and entertaining movie. I liked it a lot.
 

Nax5 said:
Saw a really late showing of Evil Dead Rise tonight...

Obviously it's balls-to-the-wall carnage. But does perhaps have some message of motherhood in all the despair.

Fun movie in the end.
Click to expand...
As a horror fan, I thought it was great, too. The pencil scene from the original movie scarred me as a kid and I've been hooked ever since. 😁
 


So, I signed up for the 2-months free trial of Apple TV+ because they are carrying several Twins' games.

as long as I have it for two months, was looking for something else to watch. Found a documentary on the rock band The Velvet Underground (2021) directed by Todd Haynes.

Interesting for fans of the group, and also interesting for a look inside the New York City underground culture of the mid-60's. The Velvet Underground became the house band for Andy Warhol and some of his 'experiments' with combining music, art, dance etc into a multi-media experience. the documentary mirrors that style with lots of quick editing, split-screen images, and so forth.

lots of interviews with surviving band members, relatives and other people who were part of that scene. drummer Maureen "Mo" Tucker is a hoot - her rant on why the band hated hippies is hilarious.

admittedly, the music of the Velvets is not for everyone. but I enjoyed the doc as a chronicle of the art and music from that period of time.
 

found another documentary on AppleTV+. "1971 - the Year that Music changed everything."

It's an 8-part series looking at the year 1971. Focus is on music but also covers how the music reflected what was going on in the culture and current events. Each episode looks at different music styles or genres - rock, soul, glam, singer-songwriters, etc.

if you were around back then (I was 15 most of the year), it's fun to go back and remember the music that came out during '71. lots of performance footage - like a very young Alice Cooper, or a young David Bowie doing an acoustic version of "Changes" at a British festival to a less-than-enthusiastic response. also quite a bit of stuff about the Rolling Stones while they were recording "Exile on Main Street." Keith Richards liked his heroin.....

and some of the cultural stuff is interesting. they cover things like the prison riot at Attica and the trial of Charlie Manson.

worth watching for the music, but the other material is also good.
 

Watched McGregor Forever on Netflix. 4 episodes. Really only deals with 3 or 4 fights. It was ok, nothing great.
 

Asteroid City is pretty awesome. Population 87. Go see it, on a big screen.


Maya Hawke has a supporting role. The resemblance to her mother at the same age is uncanny.
 

The Netflix documentary on the hunt for the Boston Marathon bombers was really good. I'd forgotten about a lot of the details about that event.

Also, the Netflix documentary about Waco is pretty solid.
 

I realize it's rather early to tout movies as being Oscar worthy, but I saw Past Lives last night and it is fantastic. I highly recommend it. Just like in this review, while I was watching the film, it reminded me of the Richard Linklater trilogy, Before Sunrise/Sunset/Midnight both in tone (also in story).

www.rogerebert.com

Past Lives movie review & film summary (2023) | Roger Ebert

It’s the kind of nuanced movie that allows for self-reflection as well as entertainment, following two characters who illustrate how relationships, both fully realized and not, influence our lives.
www.rogerebert.com www.rogerebert.com

I saw it at the remodeled Edina Theater (Mann) on 50th & France. I really like what they have done to the place.
 

watched a 2-hour documentary on Robert Oppenheimer Sunday night on MSNBC. it was obviously tied in to the new movie that's coming out - Christopher Nolan was one of the 'talking heads' giving commentary. looks like the doc was produced by NBC/Universal.

but, the commercial tie-in aside, it was a very interesting look at Oppenheimer's life and career, warts and all, including his personal life. learned a lot of things I didn't know about Oppenheimer's alleged ties to the Communist Party. (brother was a member, and a former girlfriend was a member - which led to Oppenheimer having his security clearance revoked in the 50's during the Red Scare.)

there was quite a bit of archival footage of Oppenheimer being interviewed later in his life.

made me stop and think - the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs were dropped 78 years ago. (the doc also has some footage of people who survived the bombs showing their injuries - ghastly stuff.)
 

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