Rate The Last Movie You Saw.

Sundance Update:

Together Together - 4/5

This is a really beautiful film. I'm not sure I've seen anything like it. The film revolves around a single straight man played by Ed Helms who wants to be a father through a surrogate. Unlike most Hollywood films where the two main characters fall in love, that never happens, which was a breath of fresh air. What we get is a great depiction of a platonic relationship. The film also deals with how our society looks at men differently when it comes to becoming a single father.

Prisoners of the Ghostland - 1/5

What a complete waste of time. The film makes no sense and is all over the place, but the biggest sin is that it's just plain boring. There's little to no action until the very end. I love the idea of a samurai western set in a Mad Max world, but this was a complete miss for me.

Cusp - 2.5/5

A fly-on-the-wall documentary that follows a trio of teenage girls as they navigate through their everyday life of boos and boys. When it comes to docs, I need to feel like I learned something after watching it. That doesn't happen in Cusp. Boys only want one thing - sex. That's not a news flash. What is really apparent to me is how the lack of a positive male role model in the family has such a negative impact on the lives of these young women. They end up finding that love in the arms of horny teen boys who only want one thing.

The Little Things

Stuck between wanting to be an effective procedural and dark character study, and not doing either as well as it could have. Effective performances by Washington, Malek and Leto elevated the material somewhat, but not enough to escape the gravitational pull of mediocrity.

2.5/5

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Originally Posted by fernandito

The Little Things

Stuck between wanting to be an effective procedural and dark character study, and not doing either as well as it could have. Effective performances by Washington, Malek and Leto elevated the material somewhat, but not enough to escape the gravitational pull of mediocrity.

2.5/5

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That's a shame. I was looking forward to this one.

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Originally Posted by fernandito

The Little Things

Stuck between wanting to be an effective procedural and dark character study, and not doing either as well as it could have. Effective performances by Washington, Malek and Leto elevated the material somewhat, but not enough to escape the gravitational pull of mediocrity.

2.5/5

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I felt the same way. I wanted a taught thriller with tons of mystery and got none of that. I love Malek, but he's miscast here.

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Originally Posted by Still Servant

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Originally Posted by fernandito

The Little Things

Stuck between wanting to be an effective procedural and dark character study, and not doing either as well as it could have. Effective performances by Washington, Malek and Leto elevated the material somewhat, but not enough to escape the gravitational pull of mediocrity.

2.5/5

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I felt the same way. I wanted a taught thriller with tons of mystery and got none of that. I love Malek, but he's miscast here.

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Leto was the best thing here. By far. The ending was terrible and really missed the mark.

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Originally Posted by webstar1000

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Originally Posted by Still Servant

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Originally Posted by fernandito

The Little Things

Stuck between wanting to be an effective procedural and dark character study, and not doing either as well as it could have. Effective performances by Washington, Malek and Leto elevated the material somewhat, but not enough to escape the gravitational pull of mediocrity.

2.5/5

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I felt the same way. I wanted a taught thriller with tons of mystery and got none of that. I love Malek, but he's miscast here.

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Leto was the best thing here. By far. The ending was terrible and really missed the mark.

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yeah, Malek seemed to be really out of his element in this film.

Sundance update:

The World to Come - 4.5/5

My favorite of Sundance. The World to Come is an achingly beautiful film. Vanessa Kirby and Katherine Waterston have a chemistry that threatens to leap off the screen. These forbidden love films have almost become a sub-genre of their own. The World to Come is destined to be compared to a recent masterpiece that dealt with similar subject matter, Portrait of a Lady on Fire. Where the films differ is in their settings. The World to Come depicts the harsh lifestyle of living in the 1800s, but what it also shows is the utter isolation of frontier life. The film also does an excellent job of portraying the role of a woman during that time period. A wife was essentially an indentured servitude as opposed to an equal partner. Casey Affleck and Christopher Abbott round out the cast.

Night of Kings - 3.5/5

Night of Kings is a really tricky film to describe and rate. The film takes place in a prison in Abidjan where the inmates essentially run the entire prison and they subscribe to a set of rules and age-old traditions. When the leader of the prison falls ill and nears his death, one inmate is chosen to tell a story to the other prisoners the entire night. A new inmate is chosen and little does he know that when he finishes his story he will be sacrificed. The film feels a little like City of God at times, in fact, the film is referenced. As the night unfolds, the story being told becomes more and more embellished as the young prisoner tries to buy time. Night of Kings emphasizes the power of story and how it can transport and captivate even the most hardened individuals.

Passing - 3/5

I've had a really hard time sorting through my feelings about this one since the credits rolled. I feel like I should have loved it, but I didn't. I recognize the fantastic performances by the two lead Ruth Negga and Tessa Thompson, but there's something missing here that I still can't quite put my finger on. Passing is directed by actress Rebecca Hall who makes her directorial debut. The choice was made to shoot the film in black and white, as well as display it in a 4:3 aspect ratio. The black and white is an obvious choice as the film is literally about being black and white. The square aspect ratio also was a wise choice as it forces the viewer to focus on the faces of the two leads. Considering the faces of the two actresses are being scrutinized so much, it's a bold choice.

That being said, there's a coldness to the film. There's not much music throughout, nor is there much ambient sound, which gives the film a sterile feel. The film is based on a 1929 book and I'm interested to check it out.

1) The World to Come
2) Together Together
3) One for the Road
4) On the Count of Three
5) Eight for Silver
6) Night of the Kings
7) How It Ends
8) Passing
9) Strawberry Mansion
10) Cusp
11) Prisoners of the Ghostland

Here's one for you that nobody is talking about.

Beasts Clawing at Straws

Maybe the most exciting filmmaking happening right now is the Korean New Wave cinema. Long before Parasite took the world by storm, Korean cinema has been on fire. Directors like Bong Joon-ho and Park Chan-wook have been pumping out amazing work for over a decade, but they better make room because I'm not sure I've seen a stronger debut film by a director than Kim Yong-hoon's Beasts Clawing at Straws. The film feels like early Coen brothers mixed with early Guy Ritchie and a dash of Tarantino.

Yes, the subject matter isn't original, we've seen pieces of it before in countless other films - a bag of cash and a string of lowlife eclectic characters looking to track it down. But it's the style and care in which Yong-hoon weaves the story that really elevates it. There are tons of twists and turns and you're never quite sure where it's going, but Yong-hoon somehow sticks the landing in the end. The steady hand he shows in his direction is impressive for a first-time director. I can't wait to see what he does next.

My main issue with the film is that it has a bit of a protagonist problem. There's really nobody you really want to root for. The character with the most redeeming qualities doesn't get a lot of screentime, but that's a nitpick. If you're into Korean cinema and you like Neo-Noir black comedies, then track this one down.

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Originally Posted by Still Servant

Here's one for you that nobody is talking about.

Beasts Clawing at Straws

Maybe the most exciting filmmaking happening right now is the Korean New Wave cinema. Long before Parasite took the world by storm, Korean cinema has been on fire. Directors like Bong Joon-ho and Park Chan-wook have been pumping out amazing work for over a decade, but they better make room because I'm not sure I've seen a stronger debut film by a director than Kim Yong-hoon's Beasts Clawing at Straws. The film feels like early Coen brothers mixed with early Guy Ritchie and a dash of Tarantino.

Yes, the subject matter isn't original, we've seen pieces of it before in countless other films - a bag of cash and a string of lowlife eclectic characters looking to track it down. But it's the style and care in which Yong-hoon weaves the story that really elevates it. There are tons of twists and turns and you're never quite sure where it's going, but Yong-hoon somehow sticks the landing in the end. The steady hand he shows in his direction is impressive for a first-time director. I can't wait to see what he does next.

My main issue with the film is that it has a bit of a protagonist problem. There's really nobody you really want to root for. The character with the most redeeming qualities doesn't get a lot of screentime, but that's a nitpick. If you're into Korean cinema and you like Neo-Noir black comedies, then track this one down.

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Thanks for the heads up! Pre-ordered!

Beasts Clawing at Straws (DVD) (Korea Version) DVD Region 3
Yoon Yeo Jeong (Actor) | Jung Woo Sung (Actor) | Jung Ga Ram (Actor) | Jeon Do Yeon (Actor)
Expected Release Date: 2021-03-04

Sounds like a solid flick, I'm adding to my Prime list now.

Dive, I was hoping you would see this post. I know how much you love Asian cinema. I can't wait to hear your thoughts.

Was looking forward to The Little Things and was very disappointed. Slow, boring, lacking suspense and thrills. I kept checking the clock, waiting for it to be over, and thinking that I was glad I didn't pay to see it. Acting was fine, I guess, but that's really the only thing I can give it points for. I didn't really care about/for any of the characters, and the ending was incredibly unfulfilling. The skeleton is there for a good movie, but it doesn't live up to its potential at all.

Yeah, definitely a shame it squandered that fantastic cast.

Little Things: 2/5. Leto good, ending bad.

Palmer 5/5. Do yourself a favor and watch an incredible movie. Timberlake was amazing but Juno was even better. They both should get nominations.

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Originally Posted by Garrell

Palmer 5/5. Do yourself a favor and watch an incredible movie. Timberlake was amazing but Juno was even better. They both should get nominations.

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We LOVED IT.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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Originally Posted by Garrell

Palmer 5/5. Do yourself a favor and watch an incredible movie. Timberlake was amazing but Juno was even better. They both should get nominations.

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Juno Temple is in this? I love her.

She is amazing in it.

I didn't think Palmer was as fantastic as ya'll are praising it to be. It was good, it was enjoyable, I gave it a 3/5. 3.5/5 if I did halves, which I don't. I've seen much better acting from Justin Timberlake in other movies: In Time, Alpha Dogs, Southland Tales.

Rewatched all three Fantastic Four movies recently. The first two really aren't that bad, especially compared to the 2015 movie. The 2015 version felt ... wrong. It was a weird movie. Like, if it were a TV season, the 2015 movie would be the first three episodes in a 10 episode season.

RED DOT. A Netflix flick we caught on the weekend. Wow.
It was super intense. A must see. Loved every minute of it. 9/10

Not a new film by any means, but I recently caught "Hitchcock" which was thoroughly engaging, entertaining and informative. Rather than a biography it's really a stylized rendition of the making of the famous film, "Pyscho". It stars Anthony Hopkins and Helen Mirren as Mr. & Mrs Hitchcock. There is some revealing information about the challenges he faced bringing the film to theaters, as well as detailing the brillance and technique behind filming and marketing the film which was generally thought to be a flop by the studio's. I enjoyed it and give it 5 out of 6 beers on the RFMRS. It's available on demand from, Cinemax.

I love Hitchcock. The book was pretty great, too, if you're looking for more.

I finally watched the Black and Chrome edition of Mad Max and it was fucking awesome.

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Originally Posted by Mattrick

I finally watched the Black and Chrome edition of Mad Max and it was fucking awesome.

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Unfamiliar with this - do tell.

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Originally Posted by DoctorZaius

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Originally Posted by Mattrick

I finally watched the Black and Chrome edition of Mad Max and it was fucking awesome.

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Unfamiliar with this - do tell.

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It’s the ONLY way I’ve watched it. I have not seen it in Color. I didn’t even know it was in Color. 😂 our theatre showed this version. I don’t think I’d want to watch it any other way!!!