Welcome back gang. Still sick, so I keep it quick. A lot of movies, but quick write ups. Just like this is. Enjoy and come back soon.
Made (August 3rd, 2014)
Director: Jon Favreau
Starring: Jon Favreau, Vince Vaughn, Famke Janssen, and Peter Falk
I don't think a movie like this would be the movie I'd think of being the debut directorial job of the man who essentially is responsible for kickstarting the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Not to say it's a bad movie or anything. I do think it's the better of the two Favreau/Vaughn team up movies. And it has a better sense of what it wants to be. It's a more streamlined movie, that just suffers a bit from Favreau being unable to reign Vaughn in. Vaughn goes a little to far into annoying dickhead mode. It makes you wish he'd get killed. And the movie being a light crime film, it isn't out of the realm of possibility. The worst thing about the movie is that it is light. It's a crime film and everything has no real weight to it until the end when the knives come out, but when a single gun is pulled everything stops. One real scene in the whole movie kinda makes the movie a bit off putting. It's a choice that irritates me a bit, another shot of Favreau trying to be Tarantino. But what Tarantino understood was that when his guys were in the thick of something, there was a tension. Favreau isn't good enough a filmmaker to play that many different tones. That's why his two Iron Mans look quaint now that Shane Black knocked it out of the park with the third one. Back to his movie though. It's a fun enough movie that never really reaches the heights Favreau so desperately wants it to reach.
Rating: 8/10
Joe (August 3rd, 2014)
Director: David Gordon Green
Starring: Nicolas Cage and Tye Sheridan
I wasn't particularly upset that Green was "slumming", as some say, in the stoner comedy realm for a while. Yeah, this is a man who made a movie that ended up in the Criterion collection. But I really enjoyed his comedies. So I was kind of disappointed when he went back to serious auteur mode with Prince Avalanche. The movie sounded like typical indie movie fare that I had no interest in. But then he comes back with another serious movie, this time a movie that could be compared as Mud with Nicolas Cage, I was intrigued. And that interest paid off, as this movie is a powerhouse. It is like the nastier, brutal version of Mud. But it has enough difference from Mud to not just be a knockoff. The only real thing it takes is Tye Sheridan, the kid in both. Cage shows again that he still has talent, he just needs to pay off a lot of debt with terrible movies. But give him something worthy, he will knock it out of the park like he does here. Sheridan is good again, a little rougher than his role in Mud called for. Green stocked the rest of the cast with locals, and it pays off. The movie has a real, down south gritty feel. It's a real nasty movie and will not be for everyone. It doesn't pull punches, and Green shows how talented he is yet again by doing something he's never done before. This is a damn fine film that didn't get as much love as it should have, but I believe will have a long life on home video.
Rating: 9/10
Nashville (August 7th, 2014)
Director: Robert Altman
Starring: Henry Gibson, Lily Tomlin, Keith Carradine, and Ronee Blakley
I don't know if Robert Altman is for me. Not to say he's bad, I certainly respect what he does. But much like Kubrick and Hitchcock, the stuff I've seen of his has left me cold. This movie is the closest to connecting with me, but theres still a distance I feel that keeps it out of grasp. It isn't so much a movie as it is a 3 hour slice of life of a bunch of asshole country singers as they fuck around in Nashville. Everyone here is all very good at the roles they got. The movie is shot very well and Altman does a good job directing the actors and the DP. But there is something missing for me. I think it's that we don't spend enough time with everybody. It jumps around too much so I don't care about anyone. Especially at the end, which is just really ridiculous to me, I just felt no emotion. It could have been something really special, and I respect the movie enough. I just feel like it's a miss in some respects.
Rating: 8/10
Overboard (August 8th, 2014)
Director: Gary Marshall
Starring: Kurt Russell, Goldie Hawn, Edward Herrmann, and Roddy McDowall
This is not a good movie. Right up front, it's quite terrible. It is an 80s movie to a T, with terrible jokes and an ugly look and terrible logic. The only thing going for it is Kurt Russell. He is the only damn reason why this movie is being given the rating it has. Because if it had anyone lesser than Snake Plissken, the movie where a guy date rapes a woman to teach her a lesson would not be given any positive credit. I don't have much else to say except Kurt Russell is so gifted and watchable that he can make anything watchable, and this is proof of that.
Rating: 7/10
Hoosiers (August 8th, 2014)
Director: David Anspaugh
Starring: Gene Hackman, Barbara Hershey and Dennis Hopper
As time goes on, I'm coming to realize I don't care for movies based on true stories. Or more specifically, true sports stories or music biopics. There tends to be a lack of drama inherent to these movies and they tend to get mediocre film makers attached to them. There will be one or two good performances and the rest serviceable. And usually the final stretch is the big event, a comeback concert or the championship game. Well, Hoosiers falls right into that camp. Nothing here is surprising or outright exciting to watch. It's a lackadaisical narrative with a bland visual look and mediocre basketball scenes. Hackman is his typical good self, and Hopper does what he can in the few scenes he gets. And Hoppers stuff is under written like crazy, just glossing over stuff to get to other moments. That's the worst thing about this movie. It skips ahead and misses some real juicy parts. There's nothing offensive or so bad that it's a pain to watch. It's just too much like all the others in the genre that I can't really get excited about it. Sports fans will like it. Film fans though may be left out to sea.
Rating: 7.5/10
The Long Riders (August 9th, 2014)
Director: Walter Hill
Starring: James Keach, Stacey Keach, David Carradine, and Keith Carradine
I'm a big Walter Hill fan and this movie always sounded real interesting to me, but has escaped me for a while. But I finally got to it and it was worth the wait. While it is not on the level of The Assassination of Jesse James, it is a damn fine Jesse James movie. It has the cool casting gimmick of having real life brothers play brothers in the movie. So the Carradines play the Youngers, the Keachs play the James', and the Quaids play the Millers. It adds a little reality to the proceedings, getting actual brotherly connections between the men. Hill has always played at a low key level, never being an obnoxious film maker and he keeps that going here, but he does allow some big elements. The violence is almost Peckinpah level of bloody and the gunshots tend to knock guys off their feet. But he keeps himself tethered to the ground and stays down and dirty. He never got the credit, but he knows how to frame a movie, and it's nice to see his eye in a western. It's no surprise why David Milch drafted him for the pilot of Deadwood. This isn't the best movie he's done, and doesn't reach the glorious highs he has been capable of. But it seems like a lot of editing was done to the movie, and I'd love to see a longer directors cut at some point, although that probably will never happen. As is, it is an enjoyable western by one of the under rated greats.
Rating: 8/10
Best Movies
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1. Joe
2. The Long Riders
3. Made
4. Nashville
5. Hoosiers
6. Overboard
Top 5 Performances
1. Nicolas Cage - Joe
2. Kurt Russell - Overboard
3. Dennis Hopper - Hoosiers
4. Tye Sheridan - Joe
5. Keith Carradine - The Long Riders
Top 5 Moments
1. Dog Fight - Joe
2. Knife Fight - The Long Riders
3. Final Showdown - Joe
4. Ronee Blakley Shows Some Wear and Tear - Nashville
5. Shooter and Son Reconcile - Hoosiers
Joe (August 3rd, 2014)
Director: David Gordon Green
Starring: Nicolas Cage and Tye Sheridan
I wasn't particularly upset that Green was "slumming", as some say, in the stoner comedy realm for a while. Yeah, this is a man who made a movie that ended up in the Criterion collection. But I really enjoyed his comedies. So I was kind of disappointed when he went back to serious auteur mode with Prince Avalanche. The movie sounded like typical indie movie fare that I had no interest in. But then he comes back with another serious movie, this time a movie that could be compared as Mud with Nicolas Cage, I was intrigued. And that interest paid off, as this movie is a powerhouse. It is like the nastier, brutal version of Mud. But it has enough difference from Mud to not just be a knockoff. The only real thing it takes is Tye Sheridan, the kid in both. Cage shows again that he still has talent, he just needs to pay off a lot of debt with terrible movies. But give him something worthy, he will knock it out of the park like he does here. Sheridan is good again, a little rougher than his role in Mud called for. Green stocked the rest of the cast with locals, and it pays off. The movie has a real, down south gritty feel. It's a real nasty movie and will not be for everyone. It doesn't pull punches, and Green shows how talented he is yet again by doing something he's never done before. This is a damn fine film that didn't get as much love as it should have, but I believe will have a long life on home video.
Nashville (August 7th, 2014)
Director: Robert Altman
Starring: Henry Gibson, Lily Tomlin, Keith Carradine, and Ronee Blakley
I don't know if Robert Altman is for me. Not to say he's bad, I certainly respect what he does. But much like Kubrick and Hitchcock, the stuff I've seen of his has left me cold. This movie is the closest to connecting with me, but theres still a distance I feel that keeps it out of grasp. It isn't so much a movie as it is a 3 hour slice of life of a bunch of asshole country singers as they fuck around in Nashville. Everyone here is all very good at the roles they got. The movie is shot very well and Altman does a good job directing the actors and the DP. But there is something missing for me. I think it's that we don't spend enough time with everybody. It jumps around too much so I don't care about anyone. Especially at the end, which is just really ridiculous to me, I just felt no emotion. It could have been something really special, and I respect the movie enough. I just feel like it's a miss in some respects.
Overboard (August 8th, 2014)
Director: Gary Marshall
Starring: Kurt Russell, Goldie Hawn, Edward Herrmann, and Roddy McDowall
This is not a good movie. Right up front, it's quite terrible. It is an 80s movie to a T, with terrible jokes and an ugly look and terrible logic. The only thing going for it is Kurt Russell. He is the only damn reason why this movie is being given the rating it has. Because if it had anyone lesser than Snake Plissken, the movie where a guy date rapes a woman to teach her a lesson would not be given any positive credit. I don't have much else to say except Kurt Russell is so gifted and watchable that he can make anything watchable, and this is proof of that.
Hoosiers (August 8th, 2014)
Director: David Anspaugh
Starring: Gene Hackman, Barbara Hershey and Dennis Hopper
As time goes on, I'm coming to realize I don't care for movies based on true stories. Or more specifically, true sports stories or music biopics. There tends to be a lack of drama inherent to these movies and they tend to get mediocre film makers attached to them. There will be one or two good performances and the rest serviceable. And usually the final stretch is the big event, a comeback concert or the championship game. Well, Hoosiers falls right into that camp. Nothing here is surprising or outright exciting to watch. It's a lackadaisical narrative with a bland visual look and mediocre basketball scenes. Hackman is his typical good self, and Hopper does what he can in the few scenes he gets. And Hoppers stuff is under written like crazy, just glossing over stuff to get to other moments. That's the worst thing about this movie. It skips ahead and misses some real juicy parts. There's nothing offensive or so bad that it's a pain to watch. It's just too much like all the others in the genre that I can't really get excited about it. Sports fans will like it. Film fans though may be left out to sea.
The Long Riders (August 9th, 2014)
Director: Walter Hill
Starring: James Keach, Stacey Keach, David Carradine, and Keith Carradine
I'm a big Walter Hill fan and this movie always sounded real interesting to me, but has escaped me for a while. But I finally got to it and it was worth the wait. While it is not on the level of The Assassination of Jesse James, it is a damn fine Jesse James movie. It has the cool casting gimmick of having real life brothers play brothers in the movie. So the Carradines play the Youngers, the Keachs play the James', and the Quaids play the Millers. It adds a little reality to the proceedings, getting actual brotherly connections between the men. Hill has always played at a low key level, never being an obnoxious film maker and he keeps that going here, but he does allow some big elements. The violence is almost Peckinpah level of bloody and the gunshots tend to knock guys off their feet. But he keeps himself tethered to the ground and stays down and dirty. He never got the credit, but he knows how to frame a movie, and it's nice to see his eye in a western. It's no surprise why David Milch drafted him for the pilot of Deadwood. This isn't the best movie he's done, and doesn't reach the glorious highs he has been capable of. But it seems like a lot of editing was done to the movie, and I'd love to see a longer directors cut at some point, although that probably will never happen. As is, it is an enjoyable western by one of the under rated greats.
Best Movies
1. Joe
2. The Long Riders
3. Made
4. Nashville
5. Hoosiers
6. Overboard
Top 5 Performances
1. Nicolas Cage - Joe
2. Kurt Russell - Overboard
3. Dennis Hopper - Hoosiers
4. Tye Sheridan - Joe
5. Keith Carradine - The Long Riders
Top 5 Moments
1. Dog Fight - Joe
2. Knife Fight - The Long Riders
3. Final Showdown - Joe
4. Ronee Blakley Shows Some Wear and Tear - Nashville
5. Shooter and Son Reconcile - Hoosiers
- Tom Lorenzo
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