This is a divisive one, huh? No spoilers here.
If you expect it to be ridiculous, and you are okay with twists for the sake of twists, it is pretty fun. I'm a fan of Shoot 'Em Up and Bullet Train, so I'm good with absurdity. I don't like to be surprised by it, but since I knew that would be the deal, I'm good. Let's get cartoonish and see what happens.
Henry Cavill is funny. I had no idea. Sam Rockwell plays the perfect Sam Rockwell role. If you are a fan, I'd consider this a must watch even if you end up not liking it overall. Quality Sam content. The train fight is a great showcase for both of their comedic styles, and it was easily my favorite scene. There are two action sequences in the third act that are honestly sillier than I could have imagined, and I was laughing out loud at them more than with them, but either way I was laughing and having a good time.
Also I love that some of the assassin minions are women in the train scene, I love Bryce Dallas Howard fighting, and I love cats. It is at least a half hour too long.
Recently Reviewed
I’m not sure what to say about a film that ends with a “light-hearted forced sodomy” joke. (Those whacky Italians!)
It’s a giallo so, good luck guessing who the killer is. Honestly, there are so many characters that when the killer is revealed, I thought they had already been killed!
I first learned about the film during 2023's Tribeca Film Festival (I even met Jennifer Kim there through a mutual contact), and have now finally watched it.
At times, it's hard to understand the main character, Meg. She's a survivor of a kidnapping, which we learn at the beginning of the film. Taking a retreat to her husband's family's place in an isolated area, strange things begin to happen. Her husband's cousin drops by unannounced, she's seeing and hearing strange noises, a mysterious neighbors appears, and her husband sleepwalks.
It's a slow burn. That doesn't mean it's unwatchable. It's this slow progression that makes it tolerable, along with the great casting, sometimes unsettling experience, and mysterious occurrences. Plus, the film's score, both haunting and suspenseful, carries the film seamlessly through it all.
I was planning on going for a walk after this, but I didn't know I'd be sobbing, and now I don't think I should walk around my neighborhood in this condition.
All of descriptions of Past Lives say childhood sweethearts reunite one fateful week. I feel like "fateful" skews negative, so this was a lot softer and more delicate than I was expecting. Past Lives is quiet. There are a lot of silences, pauses in dialogue, but not the awkward kind. The natural kind. Intimate.
I've seen <I>Soft & Quiet</I> a handful of times. Each time I see it, I love it even more, even though the content is disturbing.
Beth de Araújo's debut feature film is full of amazing performances, great direction, and a story that makes you think about your surroundings in a sinking world full of fear. Each character seems likeable at first, but then true motives are shown, and we are exposed to something deeper and darker than imagined.
<I>Soft & Quiet</I> is not a horror film, but it punches you in the stomach at the end, leaving your jaw wide open and out of breath. Seriously, it will leave an everlasting mark on you
<A HREF="https://boxd.it/3pmKyh">Previous review</A>:
This film took a dark turn really fast. Go in blind, and then take in what you just watched. It's a fucked up, incredible film.
It's rare to claim a recent horror film a classic, but 2019's Haunt is just that. Scary, colorful haunted house sets that set the tone of the film that's both well-executed and acted!
This is one film that'll be on top of (or climbing the ranks) of Halloween Must Watch lists to come.
(<A HREF="https://boxd.it/58wzlz">Originally published on LG OLED's Letterboxd</A>)
Shrek is a timeless classic.
I was fifteen when I saw this in theaters. Five minutes in, the seven dwarves are in shackles, the three little bears are in cages, and Geppetto sells Pinocchio for five shilling. I was pretty sure DreamWorks was going to get sued by Disney, but either way, they set the tone early that Shrek would have a different comedy style than the other animated films of that era.
Favorite (Not Necessarily Best) Four From Every Year Since Birth
Best in Show is an almost entirely improvised (just an outline of plot points and character backgrounds) mockumentary. You really see how it influenced the television that came afterwards. It seems to have paved the way for The Office, Modern Family, Parks & Rec, and What We Do in the Shadows.
Fred Willard really comes out of nowhere in the third act and just totally steals the show. He is Best in Show.
Christopher Guest Mockumentaries Ranked
Favorite (Not Necessarily Best) Four From Every Year Since Birth
It's crazy to think that I've never written a review (Well, a personal review, not <A HREF="https://boxd.it/4WvYjD">one for work</A>) for one of my favorite films, <I>The Collector</I>, and it's sequel, <I>The Collection</I>. I've spoken about the film in-person multiple times, most recently during Tribeca Film Festival at Letterboxd's Studio, and will most likely do so on an upcoming <B><A HREF="http://letterboxd.com/doublethreat">Double Threat Podcast</A></b> episode (Cc <A HREF="http://www.letterboxd.com/carignano">@Mauro</A>).
From beginning to end (every time I watch it), I was glued to the screen, watching the story unfold as a down-on-his-luck man sees an opportunity to rob a home belonging to a family whom he's currently working for and who will be away for the weekend. Sounds easy. Once he's inside, that's where it really begins. It turns out someone else beat him to the punch.... but not to rob the home. He's collecting and torturing people, and Arkin, well-played by Josh Stewart, may be his next victim, but not if he can get out alive.
It's a game of cat and mouse while we witness unspeakable acts of torture intended to inflict the maximum amount of pain, as well as featuring excellent direction and cinematography. It's not crisp to perfection and I believe the directors/producers intended it to be that way. It has a gritty/grimy feeling that pertains to this film only (the sequel is of much higher quality), but it works. In fact, it works too well, which is why it's one of my favorite horror (and home invasion) films.
This is an oddity… it isn’t awful, but it’s rough. Really, really rough.
There is some great little bits of dialog, even if some of the acting isn’t great.
If you’re a fan of the JLA, you may hate this, but if you just want to watch a lighthearted take on the superhero genre, you could do worse.
As a child, this was my second favorite of the Disney movies that pre-date my birth. (First is Alice in Wonderland.) The Siamese cats scared me, but the dogs are cute, and the spaghetti scene is obviously iconic. It doesn't need the songs. They don't really add anything to it, and they're not that catchy.
Watching it now, I wish it was a little happier, that Lady had a bit more personality, and that Tramp (the Tramp?) didn't call her "kid" so many times. The ending scene is cute and fun. More of that.
I have thought it was Groundhog's Day (with a possessive S) for my entire life, until tonight when I grabbed the blu-ray off the shelf and looked at the cover. I've driven through Punxsutawny probably thirty times, seen their groundhog statues, and didn't even have the holiday's name right.
Groundhog Day is just funny writing, plain and simple. It's the kind of movie that I wish I could quote in my everyday life, but I can't retain the quotes.
Favorite (Not Necessarily Best) Four From Every Year Since Birth
