Yup, said as much as the start of the year on another forum:
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Another Mastroianni: the Millerâs pretty wife
Dragged Across Concrete
Long
Slow
Pretty good
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âPLANEâ (2023)
I wasnât sure if I would enjoy this, and didnât have high expectationsâŚbut it was good fun.
Gerard Butler plays the captain of a passenger plane that is (due to a storm) downed in hostile separatist-run territory - where there is no police force or emergency services, only blood-thirsty, self-seeking kidnappers, who donât think twice about killing several passengers to make their point.
Great escapism, and a film that shows how Gerard Butler (as actor and producer), is committed to ârealityâ and detailâŚ
One of the pleasures of watching films is occasionally being bowled over by one that you didnât have high hopes for.
Thoroughly recommended with a couple of beersâŚ
Yeah that one is perfect comfort food
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Outside of spagvember some recent watchings
-111. Corman: The Tingler 7/10
-112. Fisher: Revenge of Frankenstein 7/10
-113. Oz: Little Shop of Horrors (cinema) 6/10
-114. Walsh: Thief of Bagdad 5/10
-129. Rosselini: Dovâè la liberta? (cinema) 5/10
-136. Nichols: The Graduate 7/10
-138. Von Stroheim: Foolish Wives 6/10
-139. von Sternberg: Underworld 8/10
-140. DeMille: Old Wives for New 5/10
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Now that Spagvember is over I am trying to catch up a bit on my 1949 film viewing.
Jour de Fete (Tati / 6/10)
Stray Dogs (Kurosawa / 7/10)
Two non english language films from the year and both very enjoyable but Tati hadnât quite found his peak by this time and I think Drunken Angel was a better film from Kurosawa than Stray Dogs. Still got a bunch of Noirs and British films from '49 before Iâm done with the 40s.
Also, this morning on Talking Pictures TV they showed The More the Merrier (Stevens / 1943) which was a delight and I wound up watching the whole thing. Jean Arthur doing what she did so well in these kinds of romantic comedies, Joel McCrea before he became a full time cowboy and George Stevens handling the whole thing perfectly. A joy from start to finish and not sure why I didnât watch it when I was doing 1943. (8/10)
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is that a specific goal, 1949? My goals are always âwatch the piles of unwatched stuffâ or âwatch the stuff I have never seen, glaring gaps in my letterboxd prowessâ and all these sorts of categories, but never âmy 1961 viewingâ or so :))) hahaha
Itâs a long ongoing project where I have been watching films from each year in chronological order starting with 1930. Iâm now up to 1949 and when Iâve finished all the films I have for that year Iâll move on toâŚyou guessed it, 1950.
The idea is to see the history of cinema unfold in order and notice the changes of fashion and technology as they emerge and fade.
I canât watch every film from every year of course but I try and watch a variety and most of the big films either in terms of box office, awards or genre. Plus, Iâm just watching what I have in my collection from those years.
Itâs also helping me decide what to keep and what to move on from the collection.
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Probably a Western, I have been watching films very long time, maybe several months ago⌠I miss time for that⌠Too busy outside or on the networks⌠Have a wonderful week-end
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A couple of Hollywood crime films from 1949.
White Heat (Walsh / 6/10)
The Big Steal (Siegel / 6/10)
Both enjoyable but neither exceptional. The Big Steal was in a Film Noir box set I have but it is not noir in my opinion. Far too light hearted in tone for much of the film. White Heat has the iconic ending on âtop of the worldâ but is mostly pretty standard stuff and not up there with Cagneyâs very best.
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âThe Towering Infernoâ (1974)
This recalls one of my fondest memories as a kid at the cinema in either late Dec, '74, or early Jan, '75. I vaguely remember sitting in my seat being transfixed by the spectacle that was on the huge screen in front of me. It has been a favourite ever since.
With cocktails being served in the Worldâs tallest building, a roaring fire (appropriate during this festive season), Steve McQueen being a cool fire-chief navigating his way through a furnace, Paul Newman experiencing architect guilt, a host of âA listâ celebrities facing death, having their chestnuts roasted, and biting the dust - accompanied by a skin-blistering music score by John Williams - this is a disaster film second to none.
Add to this practical special effects (no CGI then), and flaming good performances from all involvedâŚ
Whatâs not to like?
The one thing I have difficulty with, is knowing that Steve McQueen died a mere six years after this film, ravaged by cancerâŚand that this epic disaster movie was only filmed a relatively short eleven years after his âyouthfulâ star-turn in âThe Great Escapeâ (1963), where he looked as if he could take on the World.
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Last 30 outside of this yearâs Spagvemberfest, reviews here (you need to scroll back past all the spag reviews to see the rest of the them):
One Man Against the Organization (1975) (orig. Lâuomo che sfidò lâorganizzazione) - Director: Sergio Grieco - 4/10 (passable/mediocre).
Nobody Move⌠This Is a Robbery (1975) (orig. Fermi tutti! à una rapina) - Director: Enzo Battaglia - 5/10 (okay/decent).
High Voltage (1972) (orig. Alta tensiĂłn) - Director: Julio Buchs - 7/10 (very good).
Golden Night (1977) (orig. Nuit dâor) - Director: Serge Moati - 5/10 (okay/decent).
Angelâs Leap (1971) (orig. Le saut de lâange) - Director: Yves Boisset - 6/10 (good).
Le silencieux (1973) - Director: Claude Pinoteau - 8/10 (excellent).
The Hunter Will Get You (1976) (orig. Lâalpagueur) - Director: Philippe Labro - 5/10 (okay/decent).
The Deadly Triangle (1973) (orig. El juego del adulterio) - Director: JoaquĂn Luis Romero Marchent - 6/10 (good).
Diabolical Shudder (1972 (orig. EscalofrĂo diabĂłlico) - Director: George MartĂn - 5/10 (okay/decent).
Mystère (1983) - Director: Carlo Vanzina - 4/10 (passable/mediocre).
El paranoico (1975) - Director: Francisco Ariza - 4/10 (passable/mediocre).
The Climber (1975) (orig. Lâambizioso) - Director: Pasquale Squitieri - 7/10 (very good).
Hold-Up, instantĂĄnea de una corrupciĂłn (1974) - Director: GermĂĄn Lorente - 6/10 (good).
War of the Robots (1978) (orig. La guerra dei robot) - Director: Alfonso Brescia - 3/10 (very mediocre/bad).
Battle of the Stars (1978) (orig. Battaglie negli spazi stellari) - Director: Alfonso Brescia - 2/10 (very bad).
The New Godfathers (1979) (orig. I contrabbandieri di Santa Lucia) - Director: Alfonso Brescia - 5/10 (okay/decent).
Concorde Affaire '79 (1979) - Director: Ruggero Deodato - 6/10 (good).
Todos los gritos del silencio (1975) - Director: RamĂłn Barco - 2/10 (very bad).
Donât Shoot on Children (1978) (orig. Non sparate sui bambini) - Director: Gianni Crea - 3/10 (very mediocre/bad).
Gangsters (1977) (orig. Ritornano quelli della calibro 38) - Director: Giuseppe Vari - 5/10 (okay/decent).
The Cobra (1967) (orig. Il cobra) - Director: Mario Sequi - 2/10 (very bad).
Karzan, Master of the Jungle (1972) (orig. Karzan, il favoloso uomo della jungla) - Director: Demofilo Fidani - 2/10 (very bad).
The First Surrender (1971) (orig. La primera entrega) - Director: Angelino Fons - 6/10 (good).
The Swarm (1978) - Director: Irwin Allen - 1/10 (atrocious).
The Uranium Conspiracy (1978) (orig. Agenten kennen keine Tränen) - Director: Gianfranco Baldanello, Menahem Golan - 5/10 (okay/decent).
The Man Outside (1967) - Director: Samuel Gallu - 6/10 (good).
The Third Day (1965) - Director: Jack Smight - 6/10 (good).
That Cold Day in the Park (1969) - Director: Robert Altman - 4/10 (passable/mediocre).
Tony Rome (1967) - Director: Gordon Douglas - 5/10 (okay/decent).
The Nickel Ride (1974) - Director: Robert Mulligan - 6/10 (good).
Plus four seasons of Kojak. Merry Christmas everyone.
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And a Merry Christmas to you, Amigo. I hope you have a great time, and the best present I hope you receive is good health at this time of year. 
Four seasons of âKojakâ⌠âWho loves ya, babyâŚ?â What a great TV series from yesteryearâŚSaturday night fare of the highest order.
Thought you might also like thisâŚ
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For me, itâs the theme from the fifth season, the most seventies thing there ever existed, gorgeous.
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Cracked the 350 mark today, finally. Still a few more days left in the year. Iâm giving all fory LB stats
After my recent trip to Turin it seemed fitting to watch some films based in the city. And this was an obvious place to start. Especially as the hotel we stayed in was the old Fiat Factory building with the famous test track on the roof.
The Italian Job (Collinson / 1969)
Still a very enjoyable heist picture. Thankfully, the traffic was nowhere near as bad when we were there.
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Good looking movie in the alps.
Story was ok, nothing spectacular. Classic revenge.
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Duck, You Sucker
I enjoyed it a lot more this time than my earlier viewings years ago, but it is still not one of my favorite Leone films.
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