What MOVIE(s) have you been....seeing? watching?

Re: Hellraiser (OG flavor). If you can make it through 2 (which, whatever its merits, is seriously impaired by production issues), you should at least consider the third one (maybe at 1.5x), as there's one absolutely hilarious bit of dialogue between Terry Farrell and a priest about two-thirds of the way through that's almost worth the price of admission.

Thanks to Criterion's 80s horror watchlist, I saw Paul Schrader's Cat People for the first time. It's flawed, of course, and has probably only grown more problematic in terms of content since 1982, but Schrader's always at minimum interesting. I'd discuss the movie more but would be afraid I'd get locked up or confirmed as a crackpot.

The Keep is also on the list. Here's another (even more seriously) flawed movie, although it's not content per se but the production woes that resulted in a 96-minute movie from a 210-minute one. (And, no, from what I've read, I don't think there's any way to restore it, even if it were entirely worth it.) If you can sort of ignore the plot and give a pass to the horrible sound design and editing job (direct results of Paramount's meddling), you have Michael Mann's signature visuals, a Tangerine Dream score (on some releases anyway; apparently it was sometimes subbed out for rights reasons), and atmosphere, and that's about it--but (just barely) enough for me.

jpat wrote: The Keep is also on the list. Here's another (even more seriously) flawed movie, although it's not content per se but the production woes that resulted in a 96-minute movie from a 210-minute one. (And, no, from what I've read, I don't think there's any way to restore it, even if it were entirely worth it.) If you can sort of ignore the plot and give a pass to the horrible sound design and editing job (direct results of Paramount's meddling), you have Michael Mann's signature visuals, a Tangerine Dream score (on some releases anyway; apparently it was sometimes subbed out for rights reasons), and atmosphere, and that's about it--but (just barely) enough for me.

A few years ago, a friend of mine staged a Michael Mann-rathon, a marathon viewing of all Michael Mann movies over the course of three days. I was unemployed at the time though getting interviews, so I was available for Thursday but not Friday, and his couch was probably insufficient for the crowd expected on Saturday. We watched The Jericho Mile, Thief, The Keep, and Manhunter, and it was all good, but I don't think I want to ever watch The Keep again. It was interesting but not good.

As a kid I watched The Keep and The Stuff back to back waaaaaaay too late at night and only as an adult realized those were two separate films. I've never rewatched either and don't wanna, because the jumbled up film in my head of guys in castles getting consumed by white pudding is just too precious to lose

I watched Mr. Harrigan's Phone on Netflix. This is adapted from a short story by Stephen King. I haven't read the story.

Mr. Harrigan is an old man who dies of old age.

I was a viewer, who died of boredom.

Watched Day Shift on Netflix, John Wick without Wick and gun fu with vampires. They even had a audio reference to John Wick. Liked it a lot.

Speaking of Wick, I inadvertently got my 80 something mother to actually watch John Wick. I went to her house this weekend, to help her with her Firestick that she was having issues with, and I showed her how to better operate the remote control. When I brought up the channel offerings, one of them had all three John Wick movies. I saw it and commented on how great it was, explaining the initial opening of the movie, but also telling her they had some good bits how they reveal the actual background of Wick. I showed her the initial home invasion at Wick's house, including the cop scene.

She was audibly grimacing at some of the finishing, but when it got to the doorbell ringing, she said, "Uh, oh. Cops."

She wasn't disappointed, but when the "Noise Complaint? ....Noise Complaint." line was delivered, she howled in laughter.

I was 3/4 of the way home, and I got a text from her. "I'm going to watch John Wick now, love you."

I died.

Enjoyed B.J. Novak’s (writer, director, lead) Vengeance last night on Peacock. Novak is invited to rural Texas to attend the funeral of a girl he hooked up with in New York but which the family was under the impression was a serious relationship. He decides to stick around to record an anti-true-crime podcast that reveals America.

Somehow it sticks the landing and balance of all the humor and pretentiousness contained in that description. Jokes about Whataburger and the difference between University of Texas and Texas Tech nestle right alongside poetic waxing on the Big Bang and “Let there be light” both beginning the universe with sound. Characters are exactly what they appear to be. And more. And less.

It’s really good.

Shellhead wrote:
Then I re-watched From Hell (2001). Johnny Depp delivers a solid, understated performance, and Heather Graham was good. Again, it fell short of the source material, and is probably on a long list of movies that Alan Moore will never watch. I like that the movie (and the comic) follow the Stephen Knight theory of Jack the Ripper, which is that it was a government conspiracy to cover up the sordid dalliances of a wayward prince. The overall portrayal of the seamy side of Victorian London seems convincing to my American eyes.

Years ago - well, I guess yeah, over 20 - I went on one of those walking tours in London with this ex-cop guy around the Ripper sites. He said the week before he'd given Depp a private tour because he was shooting a film and playing the main detective (Albermarle? Aberline? I forget). The guy had written books and things and was quite the expert, he had high hopes for the film based on Depp's questions and attentitiveness. I don't think he'd have been impressed haha. His own theory was more or less it was most likely someone unknown, almost certainly someone living in the community. It's been many years since I saw the film but I think they at least did try to do a good job with some of the atmosphere of the streets etc. I know this is the film thread but Jack London's book about slumming it in the area, written about 15 years later, is really really good on that stuff - People of the Abyss. Worth a read regardless. I don't think he mentions the ripper. There was enough horror without it anyway.

**********

Anyway I just discovered the Internet Archive has all these films and I've been watching a bunch. Holy shit, The Third Man - I have vague memories of seeing this years and years ago, but if I did I didn't appreciate it. What a film. So good.

I watched The Northman on Amazon Prime last night. Tons of great actors, and the movie is decent, but I just felt like I had seen it several times before. It's basically Conan the Barbarian, but not as good.

It does have Bjork in it, and I am always down for Bjork.

You have seen it before. It's Hamlet, but without any of the good dialogue and a whole lot more violence. I was pretty "meh" on it: dichotomouspurity.blogspot.com/2022/04/a...nt-to-blood.html?m=1

Last night, on a whim, I re-watched Deliverance. As expected, this movie holds the fuck up. Every performance is top shelf, and oooof.... THAT scene. Wow.

I have to imagine that 1972 audiences were traumatized as fuck.

hotseatgames wrote: I watched The Northman on Amazon Prime last night.

Ha! I backed into the soundtrack on Spotify and I've been using it on Warcry nights. Had no clue what it was. It's good for that, at least!

mc wrote:

Shellhead wrote:
Then I re-watched From Hell (2001). Johnny Depp delivers a solid, understated performance, and Heather Graham was good. Again, it fell short of the source material, and is probably on a long list of movies that Alan Moore will never watch. I like that the movie (and the comic) follow the Stephen Knight theory of Jack the Ripper, which is that it was a government conspiracy to cover up the sordid dalliances of a wayward prince. The overall portrayal of the seamy side of Victorian London seems convincing to my American eyes.

Years ago - well, I guess yeah, over 20 - I went on one of those walking tours in London with this ex-cop guy around the Ripper sites. He said the week before he'd given Depp a private tour because he was shooting a film and playing the main detective (Albermarle? Aberline? I forget). The guy had written books and things and was quite the expert, he had high hopes for the film based on Depp's questions and attentitiveness. I don't think he'd have been impressed haha. His own theory was more or less it was most likely someone unknown, almost certainly someone living in the community. It's been many years since I saw the film but I think they at least did try to do a good job with some of the atmosphere of the streets etc. I know this is the film thread but Jack London's book about slumming it in the area, written about 15 years later, is really really good on that stuff - People of the Abyss. Worth a read regardless. I don't think he mentions the ripper. There was enough horror without it anyway.

**********

Anyway I just discovered the Internet Archive has all these films and I've been watching a bunch. Holy shit, The Third Man - I have vague memories of seeing this years and years ago, but if I did I didn't appreciate it. What a film. So good.

I think we ended up going on the same tour with the same ex-cop. Cool tour; we bought his book at the end

Yeah I looked it up after posting the other day, I think it was Donald Rumbelow. I think I tracked down his book at one point also to have a read.

Tried the new Hellraiser on hulu. Ugh, not a fan of the make up for the cenobites nor the efforts of the not-quite-teens to figure anything out. The wife HATED the raspy voiced lead who basically just has melt-down after melt-down. I'm about 2/3rd through. It it's really scary, nor does it revel in the BDSM "pain is pleasure" element as much as it could. That and the Rick and Morty ep stright mocking the concept I watched right before it just took all the winds from that vst of sails

Also tried Old People on netflix (I think). A fairly odd German horror film with all the bones of a good slasher/thriller but it has a very odd intro set-up that had a lot lost in translation I think. Still, it is certainly gory enough I'll have to circle back around to finish it just to see who lives and who dies.

The School For Good and Evil - I got dragged into this when my wife picked it out for her and her mom to watch. Actors were decent, the movie was way too long (2hr, 28 m) for what it wanted to be, and would have sucked even if it was shorter.