Movies, favs and duds

[geepers]

give us some ozzy 'westerns' we might have missed

Lot of movies have an inherit "western" theme. Then again, the original Magnificent Seven is based on a Japanese story "The Seven Samurai". So who is borrowing from who may be unclear.

Some Aussie films/mini-series with a western theme are:
Australia - with Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackson.
Mystery Road Series 1 and 2
Goldstone - which is really Mystery Road Series 3 (or 1.5 or something)

None in the same league as those classic westerns mentioned above but watchable all the same. (Well, that's debatable re the film "Australia"...)

Anyway, how come so many USA films have Aussies for lead actor (Jackman, Hemsworth, etc)?

 

[Ross Biff]

Lot of movies have an inherit "western" theme. Then again, the original Magnificent Seven is based on a Japanese story "The Seven Samurai". So who is borrowing from who may be unclear.

Some Aussie films/mini-series with a western theme are:
Australia - with Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackson.
Mystery Road Series 1 and 2
Goldstone - which is really Mystery Road Series 3 (or 1.5 or something)

None in the same league as those classic westerns mentioned above but watchable all the same. (Well, that's debatable re the film "Australia"...)

Anyway, how come so many USA films have Aussies for lead actor (Jackman, Hemsworth, etc)?

I must admit, " Australia" made me squirm but Mystery Road was great!

 

[Jim McDonald]

Maybe because they're better actors?

 

[Jim Kenney]

I just watched Still Bill (on youtube), a documentary from 2009 on the late singer/song writer Bill Withers who grew up in a poor small town in WV. It was very good. He career arc was unusual because he entered the music biz later than most pop stars, had immediate success, but after about 15 years walked away due to creative differences. He then started a good family life by marrying a smart lady who helped him manage his finances and never looked back. Also, he had a stutter until his late 20s and one of the most moving parts of the documentary is when he meets and speaks to a group of youngsters with that problem. Good stuff about a sensible guy with great maturity, who also wrote some very fine songs.

 

[Philpug]

We just watched Field of Dreams again last night. Someone must have been cutting up onions because I teared up.

We also watched Finding Forrester a few nights ago. I forgot what an awesome movie that was.

 

[Andy Mink]

@Philpug, @Tricia, @AKMINK, and I watched Bottleshock the other night. Good flick.

I watched Saving Private Ryan again a few weeks ago. Brilliant. The battle scenes are phenomenal but if you don't choke up at the beginning and ending cemetary scenes you may want to check your pulse to see if you're alive.

The World's Fastest Indian is worth a watch too.

 

[Bad Bob]

Rented Ford vs. Ferrari. Way worth it. Excellent casting and acting. An amazing true story well told.

Watched Badlands on Netflix, well worth 2 hours.

 

[Jim Kenney]

This one goes into the slipped through the cracks category. I just watched Apocalypto.

This is the 2006 film directed by Mel Gibson that depicts the Mayan Civilization around the year 1500 AD. The story centers on gruesome Native American tribal warfare and a young hunter's effort to escape capture and rescue his family. It's an unusual and engrossing action-survival flick covering a culture and time in history rarely seen in movies. Not sure how I totally missed it before now, but it's one of the more colorful and memorable films I've seen in a while.

It's always fun to discover a fine older film that you've personally overlooked.

 

[doc]

Apocalypto is a great flick; probably watched a half dozen times by now.

 

[Bad Bob]

We rentedNews of the World with Tom Hanks. Highly recomended. Perhaps one of his best works.

 

[Erik Timmerman]

We rentedNews of the World with Tom Hanks. Highly recomended. Perhaps one of his best works.

Yes, very good.

We rented Barb and Star go to Del Mar last night because my wife enjoyed Bridesmaids so much. What an utter piece of trash. It was possibly on par with Wonder Woman 1984 for badness.

 

[Joby Graham]

Some faves:
Kubrick's and Mel Brooks' films
Silverado
Silent Running
THX1138
The Magic Christian

WTF flicks:
Killer Klowns From Outer Space
200 Motels

 

[Erik Timmerman]

WTF flicks:
Killer Klowns From Outer Space

Ha! We watched that so many times in High School.

 

[RobSN]

2001

... and of course the look on Teri Garr’s face as Inga when Gene Wilder, Dr “Fronkensteen” confirms that the monster would indeed have a truly enormous “schwanzstucker” ...

 

[neonorchid]

This one goes into the slipped through the cracks category. I just watched Apocalypto.

...apparently so has this one:

It's always fun to discover a fine older film that you've personally overlooked.

 

[Jim Kenney]

I stumbled on an article quoting Michael Caine that he thought his most underrated movie was one called The Last Valley from 1971. It's about the 30 Years War in Europe back in the 1600s. I had never heard of it so I looked it up and found it on youtube:

The Last Valley is an intelligent flick with good acting about an obscure and brutal time in European history. Kind of strange how a near epic film would fall off the radar and land only on youtube.

 

[cantunamunch]

The Last Valley is an intelligent flick with good acting about an obscure and brutal time in European history. Kind of strange how a near epic film would fall off the radar and land only on youtube.

LOL, I own two copies, one on VHS and one on DVD.

Of all the James Clavell books put to film that one is better than Shogun or Tai Pan or Noble House. I wish someone would do Whirlwind, but it's probably still too political.

Obscure...well, the Thirty Years' war is not taught about much in US classrooms, true. As the last European war with truly religious trigger factors, it is rather well scrutinised elsewhere.

 

[Bad Bob]

Binge watched "The Pacific" on Netflix. This is Spielberg's military follow-up to "Band of Brothers". There is a lot of blood but it was very good.
Another oldie that always works, "Old Lions". A magic caste, a magic script, that was very well done. I could see some of these characters on Ski Talk.

 

[cantunamunch]

Avengers Infinity War - the very zenith of superhero flicks
Avengers Endgame - the shark jumping, self absorbed nadir of the same

Oh I think the MCU only just started sonar pinging the nadir this past weekend.

 

[cantunamunch]

Talking of obscure-in-the-US wars, how about the Eighty Years' War (aka Dutch and Belgian independence)?

Check Kenau - I think Prime called it "1572, The Battle of Haarlem". Strong female characters done right.

The actual situation is insanely complicated (youtube series on it here , even that only scratches the surface)

Other films set in the period were the Captain Alatriste (bit of a dud in spite of Aragorn) and the Kabir Bedi version of Il Corsaro Nero (bit of a dud as an adult in spite of my having been a total Kabir Bedi fanboi back when)