Re: Good (or bad) Movies PART 2

[Ed Vette]

We saw I Tonya and although it's in documentary story mix, we both liked it. I got a better appreciation for what Tonya Harding went through and how she was effected by the people in her life. I always felt she was in on everything.

[LennG]

That is my next one up. I am pretty sure I would like that movie, and now that you have given it a thumbs up, I'm looking forward to it.

[LennG]

Linda didn't like it and neither did my niece Jennifer which I was a bit embarrassed to be sitting next to in a couple of those scenes. I did like it for the underlying messages and symbolism. The movie is not for everyone, clearly.

You know we had the same feelings as you did with your niece. I even told Doris that we would be terribly embarrassed if we were watching it with even our grown kids.  I guess we are just too old fashioned. 

[jimv]

The other night I watched "Thank You for Your Service."  It's about three buddies returning to civilian life from Iraq in 2007.  All three are suffering from PTSD & it takes them time to admit it.   It's not an easy movie to watch but it is an interesting study in how each one handles it & how they try to help each other.  If you're someone who doesn't like to see the "F Word" tossed around all the time, don't watch it.  Definitely NOT for kids.

[LennG]

Thanks Jim. I would be interested in something like that. I'll be sure to check it out.

[LennG]

OLDIES

Had a couple of 'oldies but goodies' on the DVR for some time now, so we figured that it's time to take a break from the 'modern' class and watch movies that made Hollywood what it actually was.

#1- One of our favorite Hitchcock movie ( so many, it's hard to say) 'Vertigo'.. I don't think we have seen this one for going on 20 years, but had it recorded, just never found those over 2 hours to watch it again. Time was right and even though I remembered most of the movie, it is still a great watch. Kim Novak is drop dead gorgeous and Jimmy Stewart, well, when has he NOT been great in the movies. Great story, great acting, great direction and great twists and a great ending.

#2-- With my all time favorite actor, Humphrey Bogart, 'The Caine Mutiny' . Just a great story, more than a great cast and Bogart as Captain Queeg (and his case of the missing Strawberries). One of Bogarts best performances (again, like Stewart, weren't they all great). Bogey had a best actor nomination for this role, just didn't win.

Two, just wonderful movies. Time, very well spent.

[jimv]

Years ago, i saw a 1936 David O. Selznick  movie titled "Garden of Allah."  It was obviously a well-worn copy, taking away all the attractiveness of the film.  But, what a cast; Marlene Dietrich, Charles Boyer, Basil Rathbone, C. Aubrey Smith, Joseph Schildkraut!  It's what today could be called a "Chick's Flick."  It's about a woman who is Convent trained and a Trappist Monk who abandons his vows & flees the Monastery.  They meet in the Sahara Desert.  Recently, it came out on Blu-ray.  I got it today & watched it immediately.  The three strip technicolor of that time is breathtaking!  It's worth watching for that alone.  But, it actually is a good story.  Worth a look.

[LennG]

I have heard of that movie, but never saw it.

What we called 'Chick Flix' back then have so little meaning to what they are today. Back in the day, most Hollywood movies were made for the entire family. There were no movies for teens, pre teens, young adults etc. etc. Movies were, especially after 'The Code' were made for families and as just entertainment. Sure there were some, like, say, Gunga Din, which might appeal more to the male audience, and others like Dark Victory, which are tearjerkers and more made for the women in the audience, but overall, anyone could watch, including the kids.

[LennG]

Last night we decided to watch a movie, that Ed has already commented on and liked, "I Tonya" the story of Tonya Harding, from very early childhood thru her eventual disbarment from figure skating because of 'The incident', as it was called.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt5580036/

As Ed had mentioned the movie is done in a sort of documentary style, but not really as a documentary. There are flashbacks, and flash-forwards. There are actors talking to us as the action is going on, and I felt, it was sort of played very 'tongue in cheek' almost like a black comedy.
Overall, we both liked it, but never anywhere as a best movie.
The movie stars Margot Robbie as Tonya and Sebastian Stan as her husband Jeff Gilhooly and maybe an Oscar winning performance by Allison Janney as Tonya's mother. We both felt she made the movie as good as it was.

As said, we both enjoyed learning about Tonya and her early struggles with Mom and life in general. Her basically wasted marriage to Gilhooly and her struggles to become an Olympic figure skater. All in all, we really learned a lot about her and her struggles thru life, and it was done in a very enjoyable way. I can see some not liking this type of docu-drama/black comedy, but we found it very entertaining. Overall, an enjoyable watch.

I would definitely recommend this movie, especially to those that remember Harding and 'The Incident". There is a lot of cursing in the movie, so I would only recommend it for teens and above.

[Ed Vette]

Last night we decided to watch a movie, that Ed has already commented on and liked, "I Tonya" the story of Tonya Harding, from very early childhood thru her eventual disbarment from figure skating because of 'The incident', as it was called.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt5580036/

As Ed had mentioned the movie is done in a sort of documentary style, but not really as a documentary. There are flashbacks, and flash-forwards. There are actors talking to us as the action is going on, and I felt, it was sort of played very 'tongue in cheek' almost like a black comedy.
Overall, we both liked it, but never anywhere as a best movie.
The movie stars Margot Robbie as Tonya and Sebastian Stan as her husband Jeff Gilhooly and maybe an Oscar winning performance by Allison Janney as Tonya's mother. We both felt she made the movie as good as it was.

As said, we both enjoyed learning about Tonya and her early struggles with Mom and life in general. Her basically wasted marriage to Gilhooly and her struggles to become an Olympic figure skater. All in all, we really learned a lot about her and her struggles thru life, and it was done in a very enjoyable way. I can see some not liking this type of docu-drama/black comedy, but we found it very entertaining. Overall, an enjoyable watch.

I would definitely recommend this movie, especially to those that remember Harding and 'The Incident". There is a lot of cursing in the movie, so I would only recommend it for teens and above.

It's an example to watch who you surround yourself with. Her posse took her down and her mother shaped her to seek out turbulent abusive relationships as an expression of love. Ruined her life and her career.

[LennG]

I just wonder how much was true and how much was 'Hollywoodized'?

I was very surprised not to see her Father at any of her skating venues. She seemed very close to him and when he left, it wasn't because of her. I would have expected him to try and retain some sort of relationship with her thru the years. he was never mentioned again after he left.

[Ed Vette]

We saw The Greatest Showman yesterday. Portions of it had musical score and I enjoyed them. Linda didn't care for them much. It was a good movie with a few underlying messages but not great. I wasn't disappointed but it lagged at the end.

[LennG]

A rainy Sunday and we tired of the Olympics so we decided to try a movie, we THOUGHT would be entertaining. We settled on a movie called 'The Florida Project".

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt5649144/

It wasn't a big movie when released but it did get a decent enough write up and one of it's stars, Willem Dafoe has been nominated for an Oscar in the best supporting actor category, (He was excellent) so we said, why not. The synopsis reads like this  Set over one summer, the film follows precocious six-year-old Moonee as she courts mischief and adventure with her ragtag playmates and bonds with her rebellious but caring mother, all while living in the shadows of Walt Disney World. . It sure sounded like a nice innocent movie, but once we saw it had an R rating, we started wondering.
So, on to the movie. As said, it is about a 6 year old girl and some of her assorted friends, running around this sort of welfare motel where she lives with her mother. It follows her on some adventures both good and bad. Her mother is basically a kid herself, who is into all sorts of things to try and pay the rent for this place. Mr. Dafoe is great as the manager of the hotel, always at odds with the kids and some of the assorted guests.

Doesn't sound very thrilling and innocent enough, but it wasn't. Here is where we may differ with others who may see this movie. There are parts that are very cute and other parts that, well, just didn't appeal to 'old timers' like us. The mother is a part time hustler, prostitute and doper and the child very often imitates the actions and words of the mother. Both cuss like a construction worker, and the child just runs loose, doing all sorts of mischievous things. I can see people watching this movie and thinking that the kids are just being kids and having a good old time, really not harming anyone. Maybe, except when we see a 6 year old girls cussing all the time, doing things that they shouldn't be doing, and the mother either ignores it or encourages it, well, we think it just isn't right. It may be 'cute' for some, but for us 'old timers' who were brought up differently, it appalled us.
Now, don't get me wrong, the kid is cute and all the kids must have had a ball making this movie, as they are always running around, just having fun. Maybe this is the way of today and the future, but it just didn't appeal to us.
Again, it's not a bad movie and I would recommend it, but definitely not for kids even though it is all about kids. I can see parents taking their kids to see this movie, but I wouldn't.

And the ending, well, I am still trying to figure it out. Maybe you can if you see this little movie.,

[LennG]

I watched a movie, last night, other than our quest to watch more Academy award nominees. It was another sort of oldie. One of our cable channels, is doing a tribute to the old Spaghetti westerns of the 60s and one movie stood out that I haven't seen in it's entirety. "Once Upon A Time In The West" starring one of my all time favorite actors, Henry Fonda, Charles Bronson, Jason Robards and a host of great character actors. It is a very long movie, and I have seen most of the 'parts' just really never in one installment. Myself, as I have said many times, am a sucker for Westerns, and those old Spaghetti ones, were great. Technically not the best, but for action, music, and enjoyment, they were the best.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0064116/?ref_=nm_flmg_act_39

I won't even go into the plot as there is no need. Either you like this sort of entertainment or not. If you do, it doesn't matter who does what to whom, it's all in great fun and this movie was good. I did not find it as good as the 3 Clint Eastward movies and it did drag a bit in spots, but it was still a good watch. The stars shone thru and the action was there. Also, being filmed in historic Monument Valley adds so much to these movies. You fully expect John Wayne to come riding into the next scene every time.

On a side note, this was the first, and only time Henry Fonda played a 'bad' guy in a movie. He has played characters who might not have been above the law, but here he played a really bad dude. You always picture Fonda as the good guy always doing the right thing, just not here.

[jimv]

When Fonda decided to play a bad guy, he didn't fool around.  He was BAD!!!  People still talk about his gunning down a kid with a wry smile on his lips.