I was watching this 1989 feature for period details, of which there were many. However, unless you also are interested in period details, I cannot recommend this movie, as the plot is insipid and the soundtrack is horrendous.* And someone could probably write a thesis about movies portraying witches that end with them giving up their powers.
Cost: free from library
Where watched: at home.
*Interestingly, the acting is not bad.
poster from: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0098453/
An optimist is someone who orders a dozen of oysters hoping to find in them the pearl to pay the bill.
This is from Anne, who sends best regards from Germany. She also includes the quote “An optimist is someone who orders a dozen of oysters hoping to find in them the pearl to pay the bill.” I enjoyed Anne’s quote and her quote reminds me that this blog template has a quote feature. Perhaps I shall investigate that. While I’m doing that, check out the stamps.
Paivi sent me this from Finland. She loves to spend time by the sea, traveling is number one in her life and she’s always eager to see performances. Paivi and I would get along quite nicely. She includes a great stamp too.
Kind of an ambling movie, in that it is in no hurry to get through its plot, but rather chooses to focus on acting and cinematography and such. I’m okay with that and those things were all done quite well, with the acting being just as undeniably impressive as the quote on the poster above promises. Can we all just call for an official resolution stating that Casey Affleck is a phenomenally underutilized actor?*
Cost: free from library (plucked from the shelf! No hold necessary!)
Where watched: at home
*Thank goodness he’s a man and can just keep acting for the rest of his life instead of being shunted to the side at 30, as might happen to Rooney Mara who is also quite good.
poster from: http://www.impawards.com/2013/aint_them_bodies_saints.html
Do you not just love this poster?
The only person I’ve run across, critic or not, who actually likes this movie is my friend Hafidha, so I didn’t really expect to like this. And I didn’t. It had a good start, but got bogged down in boring action scenes (and endless fight that didn’t give me anything but wishing the fight either provided some character/plot development or would end) and ultimately was just good to have on while I made progress with the knitting.
Cost: free from library (a “Why not?” that perhaps should have been a “Nah”.)
Where watched: at home.
poster from: http://www.impawards.com/2013/elysium.html
Good poster though.
It’s a heist movie with magicians, which if neither of those things are your thing, this isn’t the movie for you. But if one or both are, I encourage you to find this overlooked flick with fabulous actors all doing their fabulous acting thing, as well as special effects that don’t intrude and an excellent plot. This also has the best character intros I’ve ever seen in a film, which, even if you think you don’t like heist films or magicians, you should watch the first part just to be schooled in that particular bit of movie magic.*
Cost: free from library (Ruffalo? Eisenburg? Freeman? Cane? Fisher? Why the hell not?)
Where watched: at home, and at home with Matt
*The intros were so good, when I showed them to Matt, he watched the entire movie in one setting which he never does.**
**This meant I watched it twice in one night, and yes, it was that good.
poster from: http://www.impawards.com/2013/now_you_see_me.html
It also has an excellent poster. Is there anything this movie can’t do?
World peace?
Perhaps not that.
Regular commenter Jan recently watched this and I was intrigued enough by her review to put it on hold. What I found was an engrossing depiction of both class and a frank (especially for 1951) depiction of an accidental pregnancy. Expertly acted by all three leads, with special props going to Shelly Winters, who had the tough job of walking the line between trapped/insistent/annoying and sympathetic.*
cost: free from library
where watched: at home
*Look at how awesome she looks on this poster!
poster from: http://www.impawards.com/1951/place_in_the_sun_ver2.html
I enjoyed watching our heroes navigate through three more cases. Sadly, I already know that season three exists so the emotional weight of the final episode rested lightly on my shoulders. In general though, I feel quite happy when excellent actors find an excellent show and I get the quite awesome product.
Cost: free from library. (And plucked off the shelf! I didn’t have to reserve it!)
Where watched: at home.
poster from: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/sherlock/season2.html
(sorry this was the best I could do, IMP Awards doesn’t do DVD covers of series.
I love many things about Goodreads, but I do not love its search feature. Typing in “not that kind of girl” should not give me Little Women as the first result, Heidi as the third result and Wir Kinder vom Bahnhoff Zoo as the fifth result. Sometimes I have to look up an ISBN to find the book I’m looking for.
Part two of my Elaine May marathon, this movie was both written (adapted from a short story) and directed by Ms. May.* I watched the entire film with a smile on my face, and then spent some time afterward trying to figure out just what made the movie so pleasurable. I think partly this was a dark comedy** filmed with a very light touch and partially because both characters should have driven me crazy*** but instead I found them completely delightful.
Cost: free from library
Where watched: at home
*This is also the film I watched with my mother when it played on TV. I was quite young, maybe six, and felt very grown up to be watching. I have very clear memories of parts of this movie and I’m not sure why, as watching movies was not unusual in my childhood.
**Not laugh-out-loud, but quite amusing, with many chuckling parts.
***Matthau is a spoiled trust fund playboy who has stupidly spent all his money and thus must find a rich women to marry quickly, May is the rich woman who is also a completely spacey Botany professor, who is klutzy and speaks in a high, breathy voice.
poster from: http://www.impawards.com/1971/new_leaf.html
IMP Awards had TWO posters for this film, which is rare for an obscure early 70s film. I also liked this poster because it was pre-Photoshop and it’s fun to imagine Matthau holding up that thousand dollar bill whilst trying to shake hands while May holds her teacup. (An action which her character would not actually be able to do for long.)
