Rate the last movie you've seen

[shootemindehead]

Ah. I see I'm not the only one wasting their time watching rubbish from the 70's so.

[MinionZombie]

Halloween (2018) I'd place it alongside Halloween II (1981). I quite enjoyed it over all, even though there are a few bits here and there I didn't like so much, but the overall story I dug and Michael Myers was well handled in this flick (e.g. the 'efficiency of a killer' thing that we see when he first hits Haddonfield). I think my hopes for it were a bit higher than they might have otherwise been after a glowing review from LouCipherr (we still chat on email), so perhaps my hopes were a smidge too high, however I did have a lot of fun with it in spite of a few wobbly bits (and why-oh-why does the granddaughter keep calling Laurie "Grandmother"? It's so clunkily formal and jarred me every time, ha!) Just out of curiosity.....now that you’ve joined the cult of Netflix, any idea when you may start Stranger Things? I’m wanting to give it another spin before the new season hits, so thought I could maybe time it up appropriately with your first round and I’ll have it refreshed in my mind for discussion.... haha ... it's on the watch list. Right now I'm trying to bash out some movies and comedy specials as that'll whittle down the list faster and get some of the thumbnails swept aside. Stranger Things, Mindhunter, Line of Duty, and a few other series are on the list as well - but yes, I must get caught up on Stranger Things before season three comes along (that way I'll be on the train as it is rolling rather than snoozing at the station again ). I'll try and remember to let you know when I'm gonna start on Stranger Things as it would be nice to chat about it with someone even though I'm late to the game. Season Two is also in 1984 and has lots of Ghostbuster references, so I’m sure MZ will enjoy that, as well! They’ve said Season Three is 1985 and Back to the Future will be featured. Ermahgerd!!! *faints* Pffft Ghostbusters? What's that?

[bassman]

Hrmmm....the grandmother thing never stood out to me. However, I actually DID call one of my grandparents Grandmother, so maybe it’s just a bit more common for me. Fair review, as well. I also felt the reboot had some issues(not the least of which is the damn title!!), but would still probably rate it a hair above Halloween II. Very curious to see where Jason Blum takes it from here, as I believe Green and McBride have already bowed out? But yeah....definitely let us know either in here or the Stranger Things thread when you’re going to start the series. I’d love to go through it again and discuss it! EDIT: you should also add The Haunting of Hill House to your watchlist of Netflix Series’. It’s something that I think would be right up your street.

[shootemindehead]

Right, so I started watching ST2 and realised I hadn't a bleedin clue what was going on and had to rewatch the first series. So now I'm half way through that. Who needs to do something productive on Sunday's anyway. Forgot how good that Millie Molly kid was. But, Wynona gets top marks. Didn't recall how good she was in the show.

[MinionZombie]

Williams: Formula 1 In The Blood A 2017 documentary about the Williams F1 team that covers pretty much everything in pretty unflinching detail. We see how the founder and Team Principal established the team, came to meet and marry his wife, how the team struggled and took a decade to win its first race, and then how a horrific crash left Team Principal Frank Williams paralysed from the shoulders down. Especially in the world of F1, it's kind of rare to get such a personal look inside this long-running team (they're the only team remaining that is named after its founder), so it makes their current woes in the sport all the more painful to watch. They have won multiple driver and constructor championships, and yet in the 2018 season they ranked dead last in 10th place (out of ten teams) with a measily 7 points (the 9th team had 33 points, while Mercedes had 655!). In recent years they've been as high as third, but it's been years since they've had a victory. However, the dogged spirit of the team marches on - something that appears to be baked into it from the get-go. As I said, it's a surprisingly personal and emotional look inside the workings of not only the team, but Frank Williams' family. His daughter Claire is now the Deputy Team Principal and we learn that that has caused a rift between her and her brother. We also see how the loss of Ginny Williams (Frank's wife) to cancer has deeply affected this man who has lived and breathed F1 almost his entire life. He's the sort of bloke who's very stiff upper lip and evades showing emotion, and while Claire has the hardiness of both her parents she's more expressive and honest about these things (she wants her father to read her mother's book, which reveals Ginny's struggles after Frank's life-changing crash, but Frank can't bring himself to - he seems to spend almost no time at the family home now, presumably because he doesn't want to deal with the grief). So yeah ... it's pretty heavy stuff at times and stunningly honest. We see uncensored footage of how deadly F1 used to be in the 1960s and 1970s, and the foul-mouthed rants of some of their drivers and key members of the team. It's very much worth seeing for any F1 fan. It was on BBC2 this past weekend, so it may be on iPlayer for a little while still.

[bassman]

Logan’s Run I suppose there isn’t much that can be said about this film at this point. Everyone knows it and it’s a classic. A few minor quibbles here and there, dated tech, etc....but still a great movie as a whole. Plus the gorgeous Jenny Agutter, whom I’ve had a crush on since I first saw An American Werewolf in London as a youngster. 7/10 Upgrade This has held up nicely to multiple viewings. Really great modern science fiction, which is a bit rare these days. The camera work still impressively stands out on repeat viewings, as well. I’ve read that the STEM camera shots were accomplished using a cell phone connected by Bluetooth in the actor’s pocket? I don’t have the movie on Blu Ray, so no special features, but I’m very interested to see how exactly those shots were pulled off! Something about this movie also feels like it’s from an anthology show such as Black Mirror or Twilight Zone? Not exactly sure why I get that feeling from it, but it’s certainly not a drawback. 8/10 Aliens Again....there’s not much new that can be added to the discussion of this classic. Although they’re two different styles of film and it’s not entirely fair to compare them, this sequel is a notch above Ridley Scott’s original on my repeat viewings list. I love both, but damn if this isn’t a shinning example of how to make a perfect sequel. Amazing film. 10/10

[shootemindehead]

So....mmmmm....'Stranger Things 2'. Certainly no where near as good as the first series and by episode 7 it's kind of turned to shit. Maybe 8 and 9 will pick it up?

[bassman]

I do seem to remember the last two episodes of the season packing quite a wallop. Looks like they’re the highest rated of the series too, so maybe they’ll be more to your liking.

[shootemindehead]

Hmmm, on 9 now and just not feeling it Bassy. I think they buggered it up. Such a pity. Series 1 was so strong. But, it's fairly self contained. So there's that. Anyway, sorry for turning this into the Shootem 'Stranger Things 2' running commentary.

[bassman]

Fair enough, it does indeed have a different feel from the original run, so I can see why it might not please all fans. The Duffer Brothers have said that they’re approaching each season as a movie sequel(that’s why they have numerical titles, which is unusual for episodic tv), so maybe they’ll be able to bring something more appealing with the next three seasons. Pretty sure I’ve heard them say they plan to end at five, anyway. Adult Beginners Nick Krohl stars as a man having to restart his life in his thirties, and moves in with his sister and brother in law, played by Rose Byrne and Bobby Canavale. The premise is a relatable one and the actors are fine, but something about it just doesn’t click like I’d hoped. I’m not a fan of Krohl’s comedy, so thankfully this is more of a drama. Not a bad watch, but also nothing special or too memorable. 5/10

[bassman]

Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse I’m only a casual fan, with the bulk of my knowledge on the character coming from his feature film appearances over the years. This though....this is something new and wholly original for not only Spider-Man, not only comic films, but films in general. Written by Phil Lord, one half of the team behind the unexpected LEGO Movie, and you can tell in the sense that it’s heavy on the comedy, but also heavy on heart. Featuring a truly original visual design, great writing, and great voiceover acting, this film is a success in every department imaginable. I would much rather Sony continue with this series for their Spider-Man universe rather than the spin off live action films like Venom. As I said, I’m not really a big fan of the franchise, just a casual general audience member, and this film completely blew me away. Tom Holland has been great as the character in the MCU, but this is very likely to become my favorite of all the Spider-films. Don’t miss it! 10/10 Ralph Breaks The Internet: Wreck It Ralph 2 The first film was an enjoyable, heart-felt comedy and this one follows suit. I wouldn’t say it’d be worth a blind purchase or anything, but it also shouldn’t be a let down, as it’s an enjoyable ninety minutes. 7/10 Fawlty Towers This was recently added to Netflix at the same time they added the Monty Python collection, likely hoping the John Cleese connection would help views. I’d seen the series years ago and loved it, and thankfully nothing has changed. Extremely funny classic that shouldn’t be missed! 9/10

[bassman]

Bert Kreischer: The Machine Fantastic stand up special! Very relatable topics, but then also the explanation of “The Machine”, which involves being inducted to the Russian Mafia. 9/10 Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Gauntlet The latest season of the classic comedy series embraces the binge-watching nature of Netflix and presents six films with the wrap around story being that Jonah and the bots have to watch them all in a row. This is my second time around with this season and enjoyed it just as much as the first! Includes Mac and Me, Atlantic Rim, Lords of the Deep, The Day Time Ended, Killer Fish, and Ator: The Fighting Eagle. Netflix did an amazing job reviving the now 30 year old series with The Return, and The Gauntlet is no different. MST3K is one of my all-time favorite series, so I hope Netflix can continue it’s revival for years to come. Netflix also has a collection of the classic episodes, so I highly encourage anyone unfamiliar with the show to check them out! Hilarious stuff around cult/B-movie cheesiness. 10/10

[MinionZombie]

A Futile and Stupid Gesture A Netflix film about the National Lampoon magazine and it's co-founder Doug Kenney (who is played here by Will Forte). I had already seen the documentary about the making of the magazine, so there was some familiarity, but not too much. Indeed, while the film follows some of the common aspects of 'rise and fall' movies (drug-infused creative highs and explosive success, drug-infused depressive lows and creative strife), the film itself takes on a Lampoonish vibe whereby it mocks and skewers itself. There's one scene where the on-screen narrator for the movie (depicted as an old man version of Kenney) introduces a batch of other writers at the magazine but promptly dispatches them from the movie as there's no room to fit them into the narrative. Similarly, he then goes on to introduce a whole list that scrolls on-screen showing all the film vs real life inconsistencies (which is a bit tricky to pause and read on Netflix, it has to be said) ... so these little asides and swipes are really fun. The film is crammed full with familiar faces playing other familiar faces (e.g. Joel McHale plays Chevy Chase), and I'd highly recommend it to anyone with even a passing interest in National Lampoon. Ocean's Eight I quite enjoyed this breezy little heist flick, although it lacks the sheer vigour and panache of Soderbergh's trilogy of movies and the heist itself feels a bit too easy and lacks tension. There's a couple of clunky moments (e.g. a "him/her" conversation), and it does feel a bit too indebted to Oceans Eleven (e.g. a personal con within a heist), however the cast work quite well together (especially Sandra Bullock and Cate Blanchett). So it's a good bit of fun, but it feels a bit too bound up with the previous movies (i.e. where is the line between immitation and reference, or a tip of the hat and full blown copying?) while lacking the bravura style of the previous films. There's also a couple of cameos from the old gang (but not Matt Damon, as his scenes were removed for pacing reasons).

[bassman]

I also thoroughly enjoyed A Futile and Stupid Gesture. Like you, knowing Kenney’s history, at the beginning of the film I was totally thrown by the old man narrator version of him. But then it totally pays off when they meet each other, discover it’s a narrative device, then Forte’s delivery of “that’s a choice”, I lol’d. The actors may not have looked extremely close to their real life counterparts, and that’s outright stated, but they did a great job of capturing the essence of all of them. I was a bit letdown that the movie makes it appear 100% as a suicide by having him leave his shoes and glasses on the cliff, though. Of course it’s wntirely possible he did it intentionally, but in real life there are more questions than answers, and I feel it probably should have been left that way. At least they left the famous quote of “Doug probably slipped while looking for a place to jump”. That one sentence seems to sum up the tragic nature of Kenney’s life. The use of “Beautiful Dreamer” throughout was also a good choice. It’s simultaneously sad and uplifting when it’s used during the food fight at the end. But yeah...great flick that didn’t seem to get the attention it deserved. Especially for Forte’s sake, as this could have helped to elevate his movie career a bit more.

[MinionZombie]

Yeah, Forte is a supremely watchable dude on-screen and can even make kinda jerky idiot characters loveable and redeemable (e.g. The Last Man On Earth). He was hilarious in MacGruber and always elevates whatever he's cast in. He was great in "A Futile & Stupid Gesture". Oh, I watched "Bert Kreischer: The Machine" last night - while I'd heard that particular closing story before, it was funny to hear again, and I enjoyed the special in general. Another couple of comedy specials I've watched recently: Ricky Gervais: Humanity and Steve Martin & Martin Short: A Night You Will Forget For The Rest Of Your Life.