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Yes, it was the first time I've ever watched it and it is just something that will stay with me forever. Such an amazing film and it's a shame that this was the only truly great film by Nicolas Cage. The alcoholism, the prostitution, the love that formed between Cage and Elisabeth Shue was just truly haunting yet amazing.
Guess Who's Coming To Dinner (1967)
Sidney Poitier, Katharine Hepburn, Spencer Tracy. Directed by Stanley Kramer. A very topical movie at the time - interracial marriage was still illegal in many states in the US until a few months before the film's release. Apparently the screenplay was original, but the movie looks like a stage play. A good movie, even if a bit dated.
Far From Heaven (2002)
Julianne Moore, Dennis Quaid, Dennis Haysbert, Patricia Clarkson, Viola Davis. Written and directed by Todd Haynes. A well acted drama set in the late 1950s, made in the style of melodramas of hat time, visually old-fashioned from opening credits to the style of the end credits. Visually very pretty, almost too much so at times, with extra-vibrant colours, perfect wardropes, perfect home... and the characters in their perfect settings try and keep up appearances and are made miserable by the social norms they are required to obey.
Great thriller set in the early 80's starring Clint Eastwood as Mitchell Gant, a retired US Airforce crack pilot who suffers from post traumatic stress disorder on account of his time as a POW in Vietnam. He's called upon by the US & British Govts to go to the Soviet Union to steal Firefox, aka MiG 31. This is the latest Soviet miltary plane, capable of supersonic speeds, invisible to radar due to stealth technology & which carries weapons that can be used by the pilot's thought.
In order to carry out his mission, Gant must impersonate a businessman and connect with dissidents in the Soviet Union, who assist him in carrying out his mission. He steals the plane, and then has to contend with a second MiG prototype coming after him as he attempts to manoeuvre and get back home.
The special effects are a bit dated, but the film is still tense and very well made for its time. Also stars Freddie Jones & Nigel Hawthorne
American Psycho (2000)
Christian Bale stars as Patrick Bateman in this thriller based on Brett Easton Ellis's novel. Set in the late 80's Bateman is a successful New York investment banker & a yuppie of the first order, whose life is as shallow as it comes. He's obsessed with the material trappings, including looking good, eating in the best restaurants and basically one upping his co-workers, but his life is otherwise essentially empty. While he is engaged, he really has no feelings for his fiance & exhibits sociopathic tendencies. Bateman also increasingly is losing his sanity, and engages in horrific murders of coworkers, prostitutes, and friends in an escalating addictive spree, while hiding it from others around him. He realizes what is happening to him, and feels the need to confess, but will it happen, and will it help?
This is a disturbing film to watch, with graphic violence. It's also uncomfortable to see a man lose himself to an obsessive need for violence. It reminds me a little of the tv series Dexter, which I also enjoyed very much. It boasts an excellent cast, including Willen Dafoe, Reese Witherspoon, Chloë Sevigny, Justin Theroux, Josh Lucas, Jared Leto & Samantha Mathis
B-)
I am not a fan of nolan films either but his best is batman begins.
Took Mrs. Benny and the kids to see Finding Dory yesterday.
Other than the Toy Story sequels I've found the other Disney/Pixar follow up movies to be a bit of a let down. (Monsters University, Cars2)
But I was pleasantly surprised to find Finding Dory to be equally as good as the original movie, Finding Nemo.
Well liked established characters are joined by a host of new characters in a great family movie. We all really enjoyed it. Certainly worth going to see if you like the Disney/Pixar films.
9/10
Yes, I know about the Douglas Sirk thing, but haven't seen those two movies (yet... I have a huge list of movies I need to see...).
For some reason your mention of the author's name reminded me of his account of meeting Bale prior to them making the movie, and I'm just laughing here; according to him Bale arrived as, and introduced himself as "Pat Bateman" and kept it up until Ellis couldn't take it anymore and asked him to stop. Freaked out the poor guy and I thought it was hilarious.
Hmm... I gotta watch my blu-ray soon to check if it's the cut or the uncut version - hopefully the latter, so that I don't need to search for another blu-ray.
After '13 Assassins' two weeks ago, another samurai action film for me. And an excellent one at that. The action sequences here are absolutely fantastic, totally bonkers and hardcore stuff. And this was only the first film in this trilogy. I'll watch the sequels soon. God damn Asian cinema, these guys are awesome.
Pretty scary follow-up film to the effective The Conjuring and the disappointing Annabelle. Good film in the "angry ghost" genre.
When it was over I knew we had something great!
I haven't seen The Machinist, but I've heard he's brilliant in it (it's a bit on the serious side for my palette).
Equilibrium was decent- a bit Matrixy perhaps. Great acting from Bale & Sean Bean, and the concept was really cool. I feel this was a classic case of studios sticking their noses where it wasn't welcome. It was supposed to be called 'Librium' and I believe the intention was to shoot it in black and white. Not mainstream enough I guess...
I'd love a directors cut of that now that I think about it
That's flexing, @Creasy47, I am planning on seeing 'The Conjuring 2' on wednesday, and for that I need to watch the original 2013 outing that I haven't seen yet.
I know. Stone would have been a terrible choice as a director, totally unsuitable for that movie. I shudder to think what he would have made of it, and what the script would have been like as well. It would have been an entirely different kind of a movie, that's for sure. For that reason I wouldn't say DiCaprio's choice to do The Beach instead was a bad one, even though The Beach was meh. Harron (with her script) refused to even meet DiCaprio since she felt he was wrong for the role and she wasn't willing to be told what kind of movie to make and who to cast.
Poor Ewan McGregor, though - he was supposed to be doing The Beach, but Danny Boyle - or his financiers - went for DiCaprio for exactly the same reason Lionsgate courted him for American Psycho. (All basically down to Titanic's success.) And, McGregor was offered American Psycho, too. I don't know if he actually wanted it or not, but in any case he didn't pursue it after Bale personally asked him not to. And rightly so, Bale had - in theory - had the role for a long time, and turned down other offers waiting and waiting, and training for it anyway (the gym stuff which he hated). And it's not like he had money to spare at the time, he did another movie after just to be able to keep his home. It was the miserable experience of waiting in uncertainty for about a year with American Psycho, and dealing with delays (while not eating) with The Machinist and not being able to be cast in Harsh Times by David Ayer, because he wasn't on the list of actors Ayer was allowed to cast, (etc. I'm sure sure, but those are what I know of) that made him want a raise of profile (Nolan - who wanted to work with after seeing American Psycho - fixed that) despite his concerns about what it entailed (that side worked out fine in the end, too).
Lionsgate weren't exactly acting honourably, but I guess that's movie business... Even if everything is in theory agreed - script, director, casting, budget - as long as filming is not on the way they can just dump people if they sniff potential for more money. I think the right people (when they eventually got it back, and could finally start) made that movie, but I'm sure many times wrong people end up making various movies because studios only care about (potentially) maximizing profits.
As for Equilibrium and The Machinist, I really like them both. From what I can gather Bale himself wasn't happy with Equilibrium (and the marketing was idiotic), but I always have fun with it, and the puppy just rules! The Machinist is fascinating. You're better off if you don't know anything about it in advance.
Oh? (I'm wondering what that means...)
Aww, but you shouldn't, it's just not for everyone. It's one of his own faves, and one of mine, too, but different tastes and all that. Or, alternatively, just wrong day / state of mind - I happened to love that on first watch, but didn't really care for American Psycho the first time I saw it, but love it now.
RE: The Machinist, my mistake - I haven't watched that, but I mistook it for The Fighter, which seems a little too serious and melodramatic for my liking (from the trailers anyway). The Machinist actually looks interesting based on the trailer I just watched.