Last Movie You Watched

[hopefullytrusting]

Nah.

I've not seen that, but The Rock loses in Doom. I suspect he wins in that animated feature.

[hopefullytrusting]

One of the next movies ever solely for finally picking an interesting villain for the USA: The Mighty Ducks 2

[NumberSix]

I've not seen that, but The Rock loses in Doom. I suspect he wins in that animated feature.

Moana is a great film.

[hopefullytrusting]

Moana is a great film.

Of that, I have no doubt, but I suspect I will never see it.

[Kalevala]

I ran across this article today which I think you folks would find to be of interest.  It has to do with the lay-offs and consolidation of movie companies and the state of Hollywood.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj6er83ene6o

K

[relm1]

The Wild Robot (2024)



Not the kind of film I would normally see in the theater but was very good story telling, cute, and ultimately moving story.  I knew nothing going in, hadn't even seen the trailers but knew this was a CGI kids movie that was getting very good review.  The synopsis (no spoilers since this was all told in the trailer), is a futuristic robot crash lands on a deserted island.  It was programmed to serve its owner but there are no humans on the island other than the native wild animals.  The robot isn't accepted by any of the native animals who understandably fear it.  An orphaned baby goose bonds with the robot.  I'll stop there other than to say the film was enjoyable, entertaining, heartfelt, well written, told, and paced.  Like other great films, it's multi-layered.  Kids will see the film as cute and funny and adults will see it as a different and more meaningful story. 

Good parallels are "The Iron Giant" (1999) and "E.T." (1982).  I believe "Iron Giant" was hand drawn animation and overtly feels retro, like a 1950's era UFO film.  In those films, an outsider is feared by the locals but slowly accepted by a lonely kid.  They bond and slowly transform from outsider to hero against those in control who eventually revere the once outsider.  What makes "The Iron Giant" so powerful is the tragic personal story. 


Side note: "The Iron Giant" was Brad Bird's first film.  He went on to direct and write Oscar winning films such as Pixar's "The Incredibles", "Ratatouille", etc.  In the "Iron Giant", Brad was dealing with the violent, traumatic loss of his sister who was murdered by her estranged husband.  Something he is very open about in discussion of the film.  The basis of the film was his wondering, "what if a gun had a soul?  What if it then realized it didn't want to be a gun anymore?"  What a deep and powerful subtext considering that was based on his personal loss but disguised as a kid's film.  I don't know if "The Wild Robot" will be as timeless as "E.T." and "The Iron Giant" are, but think it will likely be this year's winner of the Oscar for animated film. 

The theater was full of kids but they were all quiet and engaged throughout.  There were also lots of solo adults and no one left quickly after the end and I will say, the one next to me fought off tears.  Everyone wanted it to keep on going. 

[Karl Henning]

In the course of some featurette or other, I learnt about this and of course had to watch it: Kurosawa's adaptation of Dostoyevsky.

[Kalevala]

In the course of some featurette or other, I learnt about this and of course had to watch it: Kurosawa's adaptation of Dostoyevsky.

I don't know neither the book nor the movie.  Can you give me just truly the barest of details of what it is about?  Truly, barest.

K

[Karl Henning]

I don't know neither the book nor the movie.  Can you give me just truly the barest of details of what it is about?  Truly, barest.

K

The title character (a little like Peter Sellers' character in Being There) is a beautiful innocent around whom an intense family (not his own) drama plays out. The Idiot is the novel in which Dostoyevsky wrote, "Beauty will save the world."

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

In the course of some featurette or other, I learnt about this and of course had to watch it: Kurosawa's adaptation of Dostoyevsky.

What's your opinion? That's a tough adaptation 😄


I'd like to recommend The Hidden Fortress, which inspired Star Wars. It's fun to compare the two movies.

[Karl Henning]

What's your opinion? That's a tough adaptation 😄


I'd like to recommend The Hidden Fortress, which inspired Star Wars. It's fun to compare the two movies.

My buddy Alan says the studio butchered it, and I've seen the (first?) crude wipe, but so far, Dostoyevsky's story is reading nicely. 

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

My buddy Alan says the studio butchered it, and I've seen the (first?) crude wipe, but so far, Dostoyevsky's story is reading nicely.

I saw the movie decades ago. I will purchase the dvd!

[Karl Henning]

@Dry Brett Kavanaugh... I'll certainly scare up The Hidden Fortress. I'll approach my thoughts on Kurosawa's The Idiot indirectly. I'm thinking of Hamlet. First of all, everyone makes cuts to the play (Branagh's film being a magnificent exception.) Secondly, if you watch a community production of Hamlet, there will be all manner of local "warts," but one is l likely nevertheless to be impressed by Shakespeare's marvelous dramatic achievement. Hamlet doesn't fail to be worth experiencing, just because a given product is less than the very finest. So The Idiot isn't the film as Kurosawa intended or might have wished. I still found Dostoyevsky's story compellingly illustrated.

[NumberSix]

Casablanca

What have I rated this one before now? A million billion stars?

Double it. This movie is beyond perfect.

Aux armes, citoyens! (Formez)
Vos bataillons!
Marchons!

[NumberSix]

1979 Frank Sinatra Sings As Time Goes By to Ingrid Bergman

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

@Dry Brett Kavanaugh... I'll certainly scare up The Hidden Fortress. I'll approach my thoughts on Kurosawa's The Idiot indirectly. I'm thinking of Hamlet. First of all, everyone makes cuts to the play (Branagh's film being a magnificent exception.) Secondly, if you watch a community production of Hamlet, there will be all manner of local "warts," but one is l likely nevertheless to be impressed by Shakespeare's marvelous dramatic achievement. Hamlet doesn't fail to be worth experiencing, just because a given product is less than the very finest. So The Idiot isn't the film as Kurosawa intended or might have wished. I still found Dostoyevsky's story compellingly illustrated.

Interesting. Kurosawa was a big fan of Shakespeare and some of his movies were partly/substantially based on Hamlet, King Lear, and Macbeth.

His Idiot may not be a successful movie, but I remember it had a weird appeal. Again, I must buy the dvd!


https://www.hollywoodinsider.com/kurosawa-and-shakespeare-adaptations/

[AnotherSpin]

The title character (a little like Peter Sellers' character in Being There) is a beautiful innocent around whom an intense family (not his own) drama plays out. The Idiot is the novel in which Dostoyevsky wrote, "Beauty will save the world."

I don't think Dostoevsky's plots are that important. He doesn't tell stories, that's just for leads. He plunges the reader deep into the sticky, dense, and light-impenetrable depths of the Russian soul. I wasn't good at staying in it for long. I always wanted to surface and take a full breath. Perhaps reading translations (I read the originals) gives a different experience.

[Karl Henning]

Character is story. The famous example of "story line is just a framework" is Shakespeare: [young couple in love, but parents don't approve] becomes a comedy in the case of A Midsummer Night's Dream and a tragedy in the case of Romeo and Juliet.

[Karl Henning]

Bergman's The Touch (1971)

[Kalevala]

Casablanca

What have I rated this one before now? A million billion stars?

Double it. This movie is beyond perfect.

Aux armes, citoyens! (Formez)
Vos bataillons!
Marchons!

A gazillion years ago (Back when dinosaurs roamed the earth), I bought a VHS copy of it for my parents thinking that "Oh, this will be a nice Christmas present for them".  My dad loved it!  My mother:  well, that's when I found out that she was not a fan of the movie; i.e., she hated it. 

K