My top 5 movies of 2024, in order (had to be 2024 releases that I saw in 2024 to qualify):
HMs: Monkey Man, Challengers, Dune: Part Two
5. Civil War
4. Joker: Folie a Deux
3. Anora
2. The Substance
1. Love Lies Bleeding
2024 releases that I didn't see but I suspect would have been in consideration had I done so: The Brutalist, Babygirl, Conclave
Watched it tonight. It was alright I guess but felt the plot was a bit shit (maybe that's the point) and every time the Vampire chap spoke I couldn't get "I am the Count, I love to count" out of my head.
It's a remake of the 1922 original! It's a classic plot, it isn't "a bit shit". It's the definitive vampire movie and ground zero for the entire horror genre, you bloody philistine.
I do agree about Orlok though. The voice was too close to pastiche for my liking, and given the original was silent it's not like they had to work within any particular confines.
I just found the whole thing more like a spoof with all the cliches in it.
Lots of nits of the plot totally unexplained -- why was she channeling him at the start, why did the boss of the firm worship him, why were the villagers putting a stake through some corpses heart.
I've never seen the original and didn't know this was essentially a cover version which may explain why it seemed like a pisstake of every horror film out there.
Yeah, I think that's more it - every horror movie you've ever seen traces its DNA back to the original Nosferatu.
A different man is Sebastian Stann's shot at an Oscar and it has Substance vibes to it. It's absurd but somehow manages not to make me laugh when it's meant ot be a comedy. He is great in it and so is the fit Norwegian bird but the whole thing was depressing and just a little mad.
Gladiator II was spectacular and completely vacuous. The story was convoluted and it had giant holes in it. Denzel was great as the baddie but it seemed both the hero and the anti hero could do whatever they wanted and no-one seemed to stop them until the finale.
The first Gladiator was excellent and had a certain gravitas. This one left me cold. Pity, because the cast was good especially Pedro and the aforementioned Mr. Washington but it just didn't gell and left me thinking I was watching the first Episode of the New Spartacus show.
The Shark thing was just silly.....
Haven't seen a film since the Leftovers that has really impressed me. It's been a while. Hollywood is letting me down. Maybe I am just a grumpy old man...
Chicago: Disappointed.
Been trying to watch as many of the Oscar nominees as possible lately.
A Complete Unknown: just went to see this with a friend. Excellent performances from all, but somewhat hagiographic. Worth a watch but not worthy of Best Picture consideration IMO.
Conclave: intelligent and well acted and does some things you don't expect, also not BP for me.
Emilia Perez: surprising on many levels. I know it's had some backlash from both Mexicans and the trans community, but I thought it was terrific.
Wicked!: does what it says on the tin. Drew me in and kept me entertained more than I expected, but not a BP winner either in my book.
Only ones I have left to see are The Brutalist, I'm Still Here and Nickel Boys. Thus far I'd have my BP ranking as:
I liked Emilia Perez way more than I thought I would. It was a very intelligent and entertaining film. The Substance was fun until it completely lost it's mind at the end of the film. Demi Moore was terrific in it and I liked what it was trying to say and it has Requiem For A Dream vibes (although nowhere near as good) but it got carried away and turned into the Thing.
Anora. Not the film I thought it would be. It's strangely sad but way too long. I cannot make up my mind if it a comedy. A modern day fucked up Parody of Pretty Women or just a good idea that ends up getting a bit bogged down and ruining some interesting characters. I actually enjoyed the most understated character in the film. You will know who he is when you see him. Having said that, the acting is top notch but I think the script ultimately bogs the film down. Maybe I wasn't in the mood for it. I thought I was but such is life..
Out of the three I would pick Emilia Perez but again, none of the films I have seen recently have really taken my total interest. The last great film I have seen was The Holdovers and that was a while ago.
Chicago: Cynical sod.
Talking of cynicism, there’s theory doing the rounds that a lot of the music in Emilia Perez was AI generated and the awards are a way to get it more widely accepted in filmmaking.
And I have to ask as you’ve mentioned this before: Do you mean The Holdovers? The Leftovers was a TV show (and a pretty good one that I never got around to finishing).
The Holdovers was ace, mind.
Yes the Holdovers. Sorry. I type on this forum and fuck off to do something else. Like the stream of Consciousness it is meant to be. And also stupid phone has spell check and changes words all the time...
So yes that...
Chicago; Avoiding anything A.I. because Skynet.....
Continuing Oscar nominees.
Flow: I don't much like animated movies but on advice I got a bit stoned before watching it and it was good.
Nickel Boys: by some considerable distance my least favourite of the Oscar noms. Awful pacing, telegraphed ending with a "so what?" twist, and a first person filming approach that is an irritating gimmick. 2 hours and 20 minutes of alternately being bored and annoyed. Rubbish film.
Had a spare couple of hours between dropping off Little Miss BW at her friend's house and picking her up. The Devil's Own came up as a Netflix recommendation so gave it a whirl.
Not a bad flick as a 90-minute time-passer and Brad Pitt's attempt at a Northern Ireland accent was better than I expected. Solid 3/5.
Oscar nominees continue.
A Real Pain: aptly named movie. I'm sure there are many for whom Kieran Culkin and Jesse Eisenberg's mix of zany and neurotic is charming and entertaining - it was enough to get Culkin a Best Supporting nomination - but it wasn't for me at all. Had some ok moments but mostly it was annoying. At least it had the good grace to only be 89 minutes long.
Oscar nominees contd:
The Brutalist. It's a magnificent piece of work and it could easily sweep BP, BActor, BD, BSActor and BSActress. It's not my favourite of the BP noms in terms of pure enjoyment, but as a piece of art it feels like it's built to win awards.
I agree about A Real Pain. I found it cloying and annoying. I like Kieran Culkin especially from his performances in Succession but he was just annoying in this film and we stopped watching half way through which is unusual.
I have basically lost faith in Oscar nominated films as they generally aren't half as good as the critics make them out to be. So we went full Liam Neeson and watched the Irish film, "In The Land Of Saints And Sinners'. It might be to do with the fact that I am still reading Say Nothing about the IRA but I really like this film. It wasn't anything I expected it to be. The reviews were good so we figured we would give it a go. Wifey wasn't keen (but she suddenly because interested in Reacher season 3 so maybe she isn't devoid of liking a bit of violence), and enjoyed it way better than we thought we would.
Good performances. Good story. Well done. His best film for a very long time. He is going to blow it all by being the lead in the new Top Secret but for now this was satisfying.
Chicago: Going all Oirish.
Liam Neeson is a good actor who just can't be arsed usually.
Late to this but Godzilla Minus One is good, innit?
Borderlands: should be a big winner at the Razzies. Truly awful other than for Cait Blanchet who I have a thing for.
Kneecap: Essential watching. Properly funny
I've only seen trailers for that...the thing that struck me was: Is that an AI cate blanchet...or has she had so much joan rivers makeup that she looks completely unreal...or is that a component of the role?
Whichever way, I completely switched off. I find the modern trend for completely fake faces depressing, sinister, and unappealing.
In a World where CGI effects are comparatively 10 a penny, they really spent a penny on the effects on this one.
There are cheap 80s films with much better work
