I thoroughly enjoyed ‘Solo’. Alden Ehrenreich, who plays the young Han, is very good in the role, and it was great to see his first encounter with Chewbacca and Lando Calrissian. Great action scenes and effects, plus an always welcome appearance from Woody Harrelson.
I wasn’t sure what to expect with Sam Mende’s ‘1917’…but there’s no doubt that it very well produced, and made from the heart. There are some great moments in it, and I think it will need a few more viewings to fully appreciate it…
The first part of the recent Stephen King classic, ‘It’…Umm. First impressions are that I still prefer the original 1990 TV mini-series. I’m not averse to some bad language in a film, but felt that there was an unnecessary overuse of it in this remake (there’s even more in the second part, I understand).
Aside from that, there are some genuinely scary moments, a suitably creepy atmosphere, and a riveting performance from Bill Skarsgard as ‘Pennywise’, the clown.
I loved the original It! As for my wife, she saw it when she was a kid and it scarred her so badly, she still won’t walk directly in front of a storm drain. Not that I’m supposed to tell anyone that.
Wow! ‘Joker’ was worth the wait. ‘Electrifying’ is the only way to describe Joaquin Phoenix as the down-and-out ‘Joe in the street’, whose sense of abandonment by society makes for the most riveting movie experience possible. A film that nails home. with a sledge-hammer, the stigma of mental illness,
isolation, and the drive to be accepted as an individual - even if our way of thinking is alien to popular opinion…
If you grew up as a teen, or Twenty-something, in the ‘Eighties’, you will probably love this film…I did.
Directed by Steven Spielberg, this journey into a future dictated and ruled by virtual reality, touches on everything that made the 1980’s unique…the pop-culture, films, and images that we grew up with, are well-represented, and bring back a stocking full of memories…
I really enjoyed this. A great conclusion to the latest trilogy of SW.
Sad though, because Kenny Baker, Peter Mayhew, and Carrie are not around anymore.
I’d read so many bad reviews of this film…but I enjoyed it. A father/son relationship (something I never have, or ever will experience).
#192. Bilal: Immortal 5/10 #193. Reeves: Witchfinder General 8/10 #194. Franco: Celestine, Maid at your Service 5/10 #195. Curtiz: Casablanca 8/10 #196. Peek: Renegade: The Life Story of David Icke (doc) 7/10 #197. Zeman: The Fabulous Baron Munchausen 7/10 #198. Malle: Evening with Andre 6/10 #199: Miike: Blade of the Immortal 6/10 #200. Rohmer: Boyfriends and Girlfriends 7/10
The Scottish gent who blows the raspberry, Angus Lennie, was someone I used to chat to on the phone, and he became a very good friend. He played ‘Ives, the Mole’. He always reminisced about his ride in a side-car with Steve McQueen, off set, and in between filming…
205 films in a year might sound a lot but it’s actually over 100 less than I’ve usually been watching. Also, I didn’t see a single film in cinema this year.
I watched it myself, over Xmas, and I was drawn in by the magical performances of the two main actors…spell-binding…
I loved the setting, the B & W cinematography, the 4:3 ratio, and the over-all sense of pervading isolation…
The acting in The Lighthouse is fantastic. As Orson Welles once said: “black & white is the actor’s friend”.
Shooting in an unorthodox aspect ratio was a brave move also.
Christmas time: watched Home alone 1 and 2. Always love the Cameo of the polkaman in the first one
Vera Cruz. Taped in from a German broadcast so had to refresh my German language a bit. It was not hard to follow. Loved Gary Cooper in this one.
Labor day. Nice movie for some pastime. No big deal but surely watchable.
Also re-watch of Gettysburg. In addition to the biography of Grant I am currently reading.
I know Grant was not involved in the Gettysburg battle but the depiction of how a battle was fought and what the armies looked like makes it possible to visualize the descriptions in the book, next to pictures that I already have from this era.
Not that I’m supposed to tell anyone that. 
