Films I watched this week (Vol 2)
Discussion
Flights to The Seychelles and back last week meant I got to catch up on loads of films.
Mission Impossible Fallout - this was great fun. These days the MI films are just an excuse for Tom Cruise to perform the most ridiculous stunts, each less realistic than the last. Plenty of gaping plot holes and OTT product placement from BMW and others couldn’t spoil this. As far as action films go, it’s hard to beat. 8/10.
Mile 22 - this should have been fun but it wasn’t. It felt like an ego piece for Marc Wahlberg and was a poor mashup of other spy movies and fight films like The Raid. Plus I’ve never seen a film with a more annoying lead character. I can’t remember wishing the protagonist gets shot before. 5/10.
Hostiles - a western starring a very moody Christian Bale based just after the US Civil War. Some very harsh moments and a big body count. Without Bale it would have been fairly forgettable but, as he so often does, he carried this one. Worth watching, especially if you like a Western every now and then. 7/10.
Equalizer 2 - I was a big fan of the first one, in fact it’s the only film from the past few years that I’ve watched a second time. This didn’t have nearly as strong a plot, the bad guys were lacking menace and the suspense just wasn’t there. Don’t go out of your way to watch it. 6/10
The Old Man and the Gun - Robert Redford’s final acting job before retiring sees him as a gentleman bank robber, and he’s brilliant in it. It’s a nice little film with a few funny moments and is different to most other stories on offer these days. 8/10.
Green Book - deserves all the praise that has been heaped on it. Top notch acting and a great plot make this obvious Oscar bait. A must see, as far as I’m concerned. 9/10.
Isle of Dogs - I really enjoyed Fantastic Mr Fox and this being about dogs (my favourite things in the world) I was looking forward to this. But for some reason it just didn’t click. I can’t really score it as I fell asleep half way through and then didn’t feel like finishing it. That probably tells you enough though.
Mission Impossible Fallout - this was great fun. These days the MI films are just an excuse for Tom Cruise to perform the most ridiculous stunts, each less realistic than the last. Plenty of gaping plot holes and OTT product placement from BMW and others couldn’t spoil this. As far as action films go, it’s hard to beat. 8/10.
Mile 22 - this should have been fun but it wasn’t. It felt like an ego piece for Marc Wahlberg and was a poor mashup of other spy movies and fight films like The Raid. Plus I’ve never seen a film with a more annoying lead character. I can’t remember wishing the protagonist gets shot before. 5/10.
Hostiles - a western starring a very moody Christian Bale based just after the US Civil War. Some very harsh moments and a big body count. Without Bale it would have been fairly forgettable but, as he so often does, he carried this one. Worth watching, especially if you like a Western every now and then. 7/10.
Equalizer 2 - I was a big fan of the first one, in fact it’s the only film from the past few years that I’ve watched a second time. This didn’t have nearly as strong a plot, the bad guys were lacking menace and the suspense just wasn’t there. Don’t go out of your way to watch it. 6/10
The Old Man and the Gun - Robert Redford’s final acting job before retiring sees him as a gentleman bank robber, and he’s brilliant in it. It’s a nice little film with a few funny moments and is different to most other stories on offer these days. 8/10.
Green Book - deserves all the praise that has been heaped on it. Top notch acting and a great plot make this obvious Oscar bait. A must see, as far as I’m concerned. 9/10.
Isle of Dogs - I really enjoyed Fantastic Mr Fox and this being about dogs (my favourite things in the world) I was looking forward to this. But for some reason it just didn’t click. I can’t really score it as I fell asleep half way through and then didn’t feel like finishing it. That probably tells you enough though.
V8mate said:
ukaskew said:
V8mate said:
I use IMDB as my benchmark, and have a cut off at their 6.2. This film scores a close-run 6.5 
And I still feel this rule should be broken for Black Sheep (5.8), The Box (5.6) and Idle Hands (6.2), which has at least crept up to reach your threshold recently.I'll watch them all over the next couple of weeks and (honestly) report back. I'm all for continuous review of standards!
The Box. Not too bad. Reminiscent of the 1950s 'they came from outer space' genre.
Quite why aliens would pay a million quid a head to wipe humans out is a strange approach, but hey!
Anyway, it was a reasonable sci-fi premise and watchable, so I'd certainly put it around the 6.2-6.4 mark.
As for Black Sheep... you should be banned from the thread for posting that
2.0 bleats out of 10 balls of wool.
V8mate said:
As for Black Sheep... you should be banned from the thread for posting that
2.0 bleats out of 10 balls of wool.
Get out! No not the Jordan Peele film, I mean you, get out 2.0 bleats out of 10 balls of wool.
Anyways. I've just watched Free Solo. Nutjob. There's definitely some level of asburgers/autism there, but yeah he's nuts, but then when the doctor basically says he medically has no fear, you need to do nutjob things to be happy. Really good film though.
Greta
I found the young lady annoying. Once you've seen the trailer, nothing in the film is required really.
2 stupid bints out if 5
Red Joan
Based on a true story. Young lady passes info to the commies in the 40s. Gets arrested in her 80s.
It's pretty well done, but nothing special.
3 pinkos out of 5
I found the young lady annoying. Once you've seen the trailer, nothing in the film is required really.
2 stupid bints out if 5
Red Joan
Based on a true story. Young lady passes info to the commies in the 40s. Gets arrested in her 80s.
It's pretty well done, but nothing special.
3 pinkos out of 5
Kung Pow! Enter the Fist
I've seen it before. In fact I own it on DVD. But it was on SyFy last night and I ended up watching it again.
It's a very silly "martial arts comedy film that parodies Hong Kong action cinema. Written, directed by and starring Steve Oedekerk, it uses footage from the 1976 Hong Kong martial arts film Tiger & Crane Fists (also called Savage Killers), along with new footage shot by Oedekerk, to create an original, unrelated plot." (source: Wikipedia)
IMDB rating of 6.2/10 for those who are swayed by such things.
I rate it 8 squeaks out of 2 gopherchucks. Weee-oooo, weee-ooo, etc.
I've seen it before. In fact I own it on DVD. But it was on SyFy last night and I ended up watching it again.
It's a very silly "martial arts comedy film that parodies Hong Kong action cinema. Written, directed by and starring Steve Oedekerk, it uses footage from the 1976 Hong Kong martial arts film Tiger & Crane Fists (also called Savage Killers), along with new footage shot by Oedekerk, to create an original, unrelated plot." (source: Wikipedia)
IMDB rating of 6.2/10 for those who are swayed by such things.
I rate it 8 squeaks out of 2 gopherchucks. Weee-oooo, weee-ooo, etc.
Clockwork Cupcake said:
Kung Pow! Enter the Fist
I've seen it before. In fact I own it on DVD. But it was on SyFy last night and I ended up watching it again.
It's a very silly "martial arts comedy film that parodies Hong Kong action cinema. Written, directed by and starring Steve Oedekerk, it uses footage from the 1976 Hong Kong martial arts film Tiger & Crane Fists (also called Savage Killers), along with new footage shot by Oedekerk, to create an original, unrelated plot." (source: Wikipedia)
IMDB rating of 6.2/10 for those who are swayed by such things.
I rate it 8 squeaks out of 2 gopherchucks. Weee-oooo, weee-ooo, etc.
Cheers for that, pretty certain Enter the Fist is the film I haven't been able to place by name for a while. Confused it with Kung Fu Hustle I think. Now I know which one to watch, only having caught snippets of it over the years on telly.I've seen it before. In fact I own it on DVD. But it was on SyFy last night and I ended up watching it again.
It's a very silly "martial arts comedy film that parodies Hong Kong action cinema. Written, directed by and starring Steve Oedekerk, it uses footage from the 1976 Hong Kong martial arts film Tiger & Crane Fists (also called Savage Killers), along with new footage shot by Oedekerk, to create an original, unrelated plot." (source: Wikipedia)
IMDB rating of 6.2/10 for those who are swayed by such things.
I rate it 8 squeaks out of 2 gopherchucks. Weee-oooo, weee-ooo, etc.
Savages - Mexican drug cartel vs entrepreneurial Californian ménage à trois ex special forces stoners. Better than it sounds. 6.5 Cheech’s out of 10 Chongs 
Also finally got round to watching the 4K remaster of 2001: A Space Odyssey in all of its shot in 70mm, scanned in 8K, Dolby Vision, DTS-HD Master Audio magnificence. Mesmerising stuff.
10/10 for unwillingness to open the pod bay doors.
Also finally got round to watching the 4K remaster of 2001: A Space Odyssey in all of its shot in 70mm, scanned in 8K, Dolby Vision, DTS-HD Master Audio magnificence. Mesmerising stuff.
10/10 for unwillingness to open the pod bay doors.
Edited by B17NNS on Monday 22 April 03:44
John Wick 2
Only just got around to watching this and it’s free on Prime so why not?
Obviously similar to the first in that the body count is off the scale (why oh why do henchmen attack one at a time? Just mob John Wick at the same time and job done.) but the story is a bit drawn out and not as well executed as the first.
A few daft bits (is everyone in New York an assassin?) and it’s basically one fight scene/ shoot out after another but hey, it’s John Wick.
Looks like they’ll be a JW3 judging by the end.
Not great but not that bad either and good brain out, a few beers in type of film
6 dead henchmen out of 10.
Only just got around to watching this and it’s free on Prime so why not?
Obviously similar to the first in that the body count is off the scale (why oh why do henchmen attack one at a time? Just mob John Wick at the same time and job done.) but the story is a bit drawn out and not as well executed as the first.
A few daft bits (is everyone in New York an assassin?) and it’s basically one fight scene/ shoot out after another but hey, it’s John Wick.
Looks like they’ll be a JW3 judging by the end.
Not great but not that bad either and good brain out, a few beers in type of film
6 dead henchmen out of 10.
valiant said:
John Wick 2
Only just got around to watching this and it’s free on Prime so why not?
Obviously similar to the first in that the body count is off the scale (why oh why do henchmen attack one at a time? Just mob John Wick at the same time and job done.) but the story is a bit drawn out and not as well executed as the first.
A few daft bits (is everyone in New York an assassin?) and it’s basically one fight scene/ shoot out after another but hey, it’s John Wick.
Looks like they’ll be a JW3 judging by the end.
Not great but not that bad either and good brain out, a few beers in type of film
6 dead henchmen out of 10.
I watched it on Prime a few weeks ago. Was the picture a bit odd, stretched top to bottom but the letterbox cropped it, so some of the stylised subtitled were partly or completely cut off?Only just got around to watching this and it’s free on Prime so why not?
Obviously similar to the first in that the body count is off the scale (why oh why do henchmen attack one at a time? Just mob John Wick at the same time and job done.) but the story is a bit drawn out and not as well executed as the first.
A few daft bits (is everyone in New York an assassin?) and it’s basically one fight scene/ shoot out after another but hey, it’s John Wick.
Looks like they’ll be a JW3 judging by the end.
Not great but not that bad either and good brain out, a few beers in type of film
6 dead henchmen out of 10.
The Goonies
4K restoration screening at my local Odeon on one of their biggest screens. Still one of my all-time favourites, super pleased to have ticked it off the list of seeing it in the cinema finally. Just need to find a Jaws screening and that's my top 5 all watched theatrically.
4K restoration screening at my local Odeon on one of their biggest screens. Still one of my all-time favourites, super pleased to have ticked it off the list of seeing it in the cinema finally. Just need to find a Jaws screening and that's my top 5 all watched theatrically.
ukaskew said:
The Goonies
4K restoration screening at my local Odeon on one of their biggest screens. Still one of my all-time favourites, super pleased to have ticked it off the list of seeing it in the cinema finally. Just need to find a Jaws screening and that's my top 5 all watched theatrically.
Saw this too tonight. It's a long time since I watched it, I was remembering bits as it went along. Great film 4K restoration screening at my local Odeon on one of their biggest screens. Still one of my all-time favourites, super pleased to have ticked it off the list of seeing it in the cinema finally. Just need to find a Jaws screening and that's my top 5 all watched theatrically.
Halb said:
Hitchcock, what a great lil film. Tony Hopkins, UK's finest actor as ever, excellent.
I think they missed a trick not bringing in the famous signature tunes as he walks off at the end.
Difficult to think that Hitch never won an Oscar.
Watched this tonight on your recommendation and really enjoyed it. Especially after seeing Psycho when it originally came out when I was about 14! Scared the living sI think they missed a trick not bringing in the famous signature tunes as he walks off at the end.
Difficult to think that Hitch never won an Oscar.
t out of me, the original that is! 8/10
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