Movie Recommendations - not necessarily too hot

I have heard really good things about Sleeping with Other People.


Also, there is a movie by that name that might be worth checking out.

 

One of my good friends and I went to see it when it first came out. Old downtown theater and for some reason that line stuck with us for years.

 

Sorry but this is just a massively bad take. No Country & True Grit are masterpieces, probably their best films. Llewyn Davis is great too. And sorry, but Buster Scruggs rocked too.

 

I need to give “Llewelyn Davis” another go - wasn’t totally on board first time. The “Please Mr Kennedy“ bit with Timberlake (who isn’t my fav but great here) was fun.

 

Its definitely a bleak movie. The main character is also an unlikeable loser who is horrible to almost everyone around him. But its probably one of the best movies about failure in the music business, where talent and integrity aren't necessarily rewarded.

 

My contribution (fair warning: outdated--no fresh stuff).

Miracle. 2004. Disney's retelling of the 1980 US Olympic hockey team's "Miracle on Ice" upset of USSR juggernaut in Lake Placid, New York. Kurt Russell stars as Herb Brooks. Never gets old.

Troy. 2004, with Brad Pitt as Achilles and Eric Bana As Hector. Classic retelling of Homer's the Iliad and Virgil's Aeneid.

The Lost City. 2005. Andy Garcia's pet project--he directed produced and starred in it. About Havana leading up to Castro revolution. Bill Murray and Dustin Hoffman co-star.

The Grey. 2011. Liam Neeson. Plane full of men on way to work in tundra, crashes in Alaska. Survivors are hunted by wolf pack--veneer for deeper symbolism.

The Magnificent Seven. 1960 Western retelling of the 7 Samuri (someone listed it above). Crazy cast: Yul Brinner, Stv Mcqueen, Charles Bronson, James Colburn, Eli Wallach.

Hondo. 1953. John Wayne stars in first Louis L'Amour western movie.

Monument's Men. 2014. George Clooney, Bill Murray, John Goodman, Matt Damon...WW II pic about Hitler's attempt to concentrate all of Europe's great art to Germany.

Shawshank Redemption. 1994 Stephen King movie with Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman.

True Grit. 2010. Coen bros remake of Duke classic. Western. Jeff Bridges as John Wayne... Didnt think the original could be touched... Was pleasantly proven wrong.

Fool's Gold. 2008. Fun rom com with backdrop of treasure hunting in gulf/Caribbean, and Key West.

War & Peace--1956, with Henry Fonda and Audrey Hepburn. A worthy (streamlined) retelling of the book imho. Doesn't get as much love as it deserves. (Also, the 4 part BBC W&P from like 2016 was pretty solid as well).

A few Bogie classics:

Casablanca (1942)
Treasure of the Sierre Madre (1948)
To Have and Have Not (1944)

Kung Fu/martial arts movies:

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. 2000. (Ziyi Zhang & Michelle Yeoh)
Fearless. 2006 (Jet Li's last pic)
Enter the Dragon. 1973 (Bruce Lee)
Dragon. 1993 (about Bruce Lee)
Hero. 2002 (Jet Li & Ziyi Zhang)
The Legend of the Black Scorpion. 2006 (Ziyi Zhang)
The Man with the Iron Fist. 2012. (Rza, Lucy Liu, Russell Crowe).
Lone Wolf McQuade. 1983. (Chuck Norris & David Carradine--the movie that inspired "Walker, Texas Ranger" TV series).
The Last Dragon (1985--has Vanity, and it's pretty funny (and the martial arts are actually pretty decent));
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FYI: The 'metric' I used is simply movies I watch many times, and never tire of.

FWIW.

 

Hell yeah, Brick is just the ticket. Such a good little film.

 

Green Room was fantastic (for that kind of film). I absolutely loved it. Watched it twice now.

 

List continued:

Tarus Bulba - Yul Brenner / Tony Curtis - old and formulaic / from childhood
Texas Chainsaw Massacre - (sorry O&B) very violent...lol Tobe Hooper version
Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid
The Sorrow and the Pity - 7 hour documentary
The Bunker - The guy that plays Hitler is really good IMO
The Natural - My favorite baseball flick
Gone with the Wind - BS romantic portrayal of the old south but entertaining
The original Wizard of Oz
The sound of music - So what if I am a sap? I like it!!
The Thing
Old Yeller
Black Beauty
Behind the green door - LOL just kidding, movie SUCKED
Life of Pi

 

Wind River is awesome. You guys know your movies. TS's Yellowstone series is straight fire as well.

 

Same here. It's a Father/Son movie disguised as a romantic comedy.

 

We better, what else to do during Covid?? lol

 

Bone Tomahawk made me queasy. I'm apparently a wuss.

 

If you are really into movies, The Ringer’s Rewatachable Podcast is worth checking out.

 

Edge of Tomorrow was awesome and fun to re-watch.
Some more under the radar gems are -
1) After Dark My Sweet - Jason Patrick is fantastic in this film, also has Rachel Ward.
2) Rush - The 1990's one with JP killing it again, and Jennifer Jason Leigh
3) Martyr - French version, horror, unforgettable.
4) World According to Garp - Robin Williams
5) Wunderlust - Comedy with a mirror scene with Paul Rudd that is one of the funniest things I've ever scene. Paul Rudd is funny as hell.
6) Alpha Dog - Based on true story, must see!
7) GVS flicks to catch - Drugstore Cowboy & Elephant.
8) Wonder Boys - An all time fav of mine.
9) Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang - A fun little film

 

love wonder boys....rewatched a few weeks ago.

 

I watch a lot of movies so I'll stay away from my Rewatchables list or blockbusters. Here are a few under-the-radar films from the last few years:

First Reformed (2017) - Paul Schrader script/film
Den of Thieves (2018) - not as good as Heat but the same vein
Private Life (2018)-Kathryn Hahn is a treasure
Transit (2018)-foreign film about fleeing Nazi occupation
The Sisters Brothers (2018)-John C. Reilly can do it all
Dick Johnson is Dead (2020) - documentary on a filmmaker processing her dad going through Alzheimers. Not as depressing as you'd think.
The Way Back (2020) - when was I transformed from an Affleck hater to a fan?
Host (2020) - perfect little horror film for our Zoom times
The Wolf of Snow Hollow (2020) - horror comedy

Is anyone else on Letterboxd? I don't write many reviews but I do find it helpful to rate movies and follow others whose opinions I respect.

 

Came across an actor that I really like, Sam Rockwell. Watched a bunch of his movies and liked everyone. He was Wild Bill in The Green Mile. Other good movies were "The Way Way Back" and one I just watched "Best of Enemies". It was about racism in the south.

 

First Reformed is really good. Not enough people are talking about it.

 

You see “Moon”? Mentioned above a few times. Sci fi - indie, lower budget