[quote=Irishman12]RICHARD JEWELL

Clint Eastwood returns about the 1996 Olympics bombing and the security guard, Richard Jewell, who first noticed the bag and began evacuating the area, becoming a hero for his efforts. However, soon after his discovery is made, he is filleted by the media and FBI and becomes the main suspect. I really have enjoyed Paul Walter Hauser's work since I first saw him in I, TONYA. Usually he plays the bumbling idiot and while that is still mainly his role in this film, he does show a dramatic range here. Olivia Wilde is detestable as reporter Kathy Scruggs, who has no morals or conscience to speak of whatsoever, and does whatever she can to get a story. Overall, the movie seems quite repetitive: FBI tries to get Jewell to implicate himself, Jewell assists to clear his name or assist them with their investigation, Jewell's lawyer Watson Bryant (played by Sam Rockwell) yells at him to not cooperate with them, repeat. Could have been a better study at the power of the media and how they can ruin lives when they don't get the facts straight/jump to conclusions. 5.5/10


Surprised with the 5.5, I have not seen it yet but hear of better reviews.

I watched the FX Original A Christmas Carol last night and loved it..... 3.5 out of 5


I love watching all the Christmas Carols.
This new version is Dark and well done.

https://youtu.be/uNxZazunHF0

The Bishops Wife

Me decorating the Tree

https://youtu.be/vWGL9PLliLY

I like Clint Eastwood, but his movies can be kind of hit or miss for me.

BOMBSHELL

During the previews, I thought Charlize Theron was a spitting image of Megyn Kelly (makeup and wardrobe did a great job with her transformation). As for the story, as you can probably guess going in, this is an attack on Roger Ailes and Fox News so a certain amount of salt must be taken while viewing this film. However, all politics aside I do think John Lithgow shined in his portrayal of misogynistic Fox News President/CEO Roger Ailes. I had high hopes for this as judging from the previews, this to me had kind of a THE BIG SHORT/VICE vibe to it and I really enjoyed those movies. With this film, I think it was at times, all over the place. Theron is the star and then from time to time they'd pepper Gretchen Carlson (played by Nicole Kidman) and Kayla Pospisil (Margot Robbie) stories in. However, the film should have done a better job of making up its mind: focus on Theron strictly or fleshing out the Carlson/Pospisil stories more. A little disappointing but good performances all around. 6/10

BLACK CHRISTMAS

The second remake of the 1974 classic and this was by far the worst. If you're a fan of horror and can look past the excessive amount of misandry throughout the film, then you may enjoy it. However, it's so obvious and heavy handed that as a male, yeah, I had a problem with it. Not to mention the entire third act which was an absolute trainwreck and story wise, too ludicrous. Women will whine and complain about not getting enough representation to make movies, however, when they make garbage such as this or CHARLIE'S ANGELS, and they segregate half of the population, don't be surprised when it bombs at the box office! 4/10

I watched The Two Jakes. It wasn't remotely as good as Chinatown, but if you watch it on it's own terms it's not without it's charms. Whereas Chinatown was moody throughout its duration, Two Jakes was lighthearted at times to the point it was verging on slapstick; it perhaps would've benefited from a more consistent tone. Jack Nicholson was just doing "Jack" at this point, playing himself, to the point it almost felt like parody, but Harvey Keitel was excellent and it was a kick seeing them interact. The movie was dense, wordy, and hard to follow but the denouement was well put together and almost made it all worthwhile.

One other thing - it was jarring seeing two fifty-something year old men playing opposite women young enough to be their daughters, and Nicholson almost seemed to be taking directorial license with some of his scenes, particularly the "romantic" scenes.

BRUTE FORCE (1947)

Hollywood did very well by prison movies from the Thirties through the Fifties, and this is one of the best--tough, forceful and focused. Joe Collins (Burt Lancaster) is single-minded in breaking out, and leads his cellmates in a brave (but as you no doubt correctly surmise) futile attempt. Director Jules Dassin turns this into a borderline film noir, and he gets excellent performances from the supporting cast that includes Charles Bickford, Whit Bissel, Jeff Corey, Sam Levine, Howard Duff and Yvonne DeCarlo. But the movie belongs to Hume Cronyn, who plays the sadistic chief guard Capt. Munsey. Despite his small size and gentle voice, Cronyn turns Munsey into one of the scariest, most loathsome characters you'll ever see. Like most prison movies, "Brute Force" can't escape cliches (including a singing West Indian prisoner), but overall, it's really good.

Candy Corn 2019

Not bad and not great, had creepy value and some actors were pretty good, others not so much.

5 out of 10

https://youtu.be/EGf6Q7CQDH8

Just watched, The Two Popes. Great writing and acting. Although I'm not a fan of Pope Francis, specially with his political stands, I thought it was well made.

Anyone watch Korean movies?

The Wailing, I Saw the Devil and Memories of Murder are all really good, and of course Old Boy is a classic.

I’ll have to catch Two Popes, heard good things.


Never seen Koren Movies Moe but will look it up sometime.

I only recently heard of I SAW THE DEVIL but heard it was really good. What's your review of it and how high would you rate it?

UNCUT GEMS

This looked pretty interesting from the previews and at times it seemed to move pretty fast but at other times, it seemed to repeat itself. Honestly, one of, if not the best Adam Sandler role I've ever seen him in. I'd like to say he deserves at least an Academy Award nomination for this, but with all of the other competition (some of which I agree with and some of which I don't), I wouldn't be surprised if they squeezed him out of the Best Actor category. I also thought they found an interesting way to incorporate Kevin Garnett throughout the film, as he is an integral part in the film and doesn't just make a cameo. An interesting study of sports gambling addiction with a depressing ending. 6.5/10

I’m looking forward to seeing Sandler in this movie.

With 2019 coming to a close, here's my top ten list for the year. Curious what some of yours looks like:

1) JOKER
2) MIDSOMMAR
3) AVENGERS: ENDGAME
4) ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD
5) THE IRISHMAN
6) SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME
7) IT: CHAPTER TWO
8) STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER
9) KNIVES OUT
10) READY OR NOT

It just got released this week. If you see it, I'd be curious as to your thoughts on it.

Will do....

Right now I would have to say the best Movies for me this year were

GreenBook.

Joker

Irishman

Shaka Zulu (make sure its the one starring Henry Cele). I recommend it to all. It's really a tv miniseries from 1986 about the emergence of Shaka as the Zulu leader and how he revolutionized Zulu warfare and reigned over his people. The soundtrack includes several a cappella chants and songs which I thoroughly enjoyed. It's ten episodes and much is it is quite violent. It's actors are primarily English and their dialogues can be a challenge to understand. Nevertheless, I give it 5 stars.

THE GRUDGE

Started the year off by taking a flier on this last night. I've never been big on Japanese horror so I went in to this hesitantly (also the Sarah Michelle Gellar version was hot garbage back in 2004, so I still had that image in my head.) The premise here is an American nurse working in Tokyo misses her family and gets spooked out and shortens her commitment in Japan to return home. Unbeknownst to her, a spirit has attached itself to her, which causes her to kill her family. Thus, the house is haunted and now anyone entering the house (realtors, police, etc.) will have the same spirit attached to them. For a R rated horror film, it's pretty tame with mostly jump scares and some "grotesque" images. The story skips around primarily between 2004-2006. Wasn't expecting much going in and that's how I felt coming out. Nothing special to see here. 4.5/10

LUCY IN THE SKY

I'm seriously perplexed at why this film doesn't have better reviews? This is one of, if not the best, Natalie Portman performance I've ever seen. Not as dark or deep as Joaquin Phoenix in Joker but I still got that vibe of someone who's slowly losing touch with reality. She's strong, smart, and fierce at times. Wonderful editing with a lot of overhead shots and camera zooms to heighten Portman's isolation. And on a final note: after seeing him in this and RICHARD JEWEL recently, I'm convinced Jon Hamm doesn't have to stretch his acting chops very much to pull off playing an a--hole. I have nothing against the man and his work is spotty for me at times, but recently, he just comes across as that a--hole (so kudos to him). Looking forward to another viewing and I hope Natalie not only gets an Oscar nomination but wins the damn thing! I would definitely have to update my Top Ten list of 2019 and include this film in there. 8/10

Natalie Portman is the best actress of her generation. Hands down.

She's one of my favorite actresses of all-time, alongside Nicole Kidman. But yes, this is a wonderful performance by her!

The Best of Enemies 2019

3 1/2 out of 5

Good movie really enjoyed it.
True story of an Activist and a Clansman in Durham S.C. 1971.

CAN YOU EVER FORGIVE ME: 2018

3 1/2 out of 5

Really well done and the characters were so likable.
Not sure why this movie did not score more of a buzz.

Glad you liked it DP! It was in my Top Ten for 2018. Loved Melissa McCarthy's performance. I don't think many people have seen it due to not much of an advertising campaign, hence the reason for lack of buzz.

I was looking back for a review but guess I did not go back fur enough, search did not work either.

Your top 10....WOW...... what was your score? I figure my 3.5 is a 7 on the out of 10 scale.
I really liked it a lot.


My new streaming device is having me catch up rapidly on Movies I missed so sorry if I am on a delay.

I can also tell you my device is now kicking Disney + and this Disney ToGo Movie with the Dog is HUGE for me and the Wife
Check it out if you can. We score it off the charts and Best Disney movie Ever.

I found my review of CAN YOU EVER FORGIVE ME? on page 36 of this thread but for some reason, I didn't score it? I have no idea but I'd give it at least a 7 or 7.5, so sounds like we agree on that.

JUST MERCY

The true story of civil right lawyer Bryan Stevenson (played by Michael B. Jordan) who dedicates his life to free innocent men on death row in Alabama. The movie primarily deals with the case of Walter McMillian (played by Jamie Foxx), who wrongly spent 6 years on death row between the years 1987-1993. Going in to this, you know what to expect: a heartfelt story about the injustice the criminal justice system and racism can reap and sow. Other than the tragedy that this story is, the performances are flat. Oscar bait, one in which I don't think the Academy will bite as this is a pretty forgettable movie. 6/10

1917

A movie experience! At times while watching this, I had the same experience while watching GRAVITY back in 2013: suspenseful, realistic, believable, and an intimate connection that at times, makes you feel you're not watching a movie but right beside the characters. Wonderful set designs and cinematography. I've always been a fan of long one-take shots, and Mendes and company pull off an entire film that way masterfully. One of the best war movies probably ever and definitely the type of film to see on the big screen! I'm sure this will clean up at the Oscars next month. 8/10

Real Women Have Curves was America Ferrera's first movie. It center's on 18 year old Ana whose life in the LA barrio has some unique aspects that are characteristic of the Hispanic culture. However, it has those characteristics that are common in all families. For one, Ana has the opportunity to attend Columbia, but her mother wants her home. Her sister has a struggling dress making company and she needs Ana to help out. Ana meets her first love with those implications. It's really so interesting also because it is scripted from a woman's point of view.