Movies 2025 Movie Discussion Thread

[odessasteps]

Where Dreams May Come has to be in the discussion.

And no one better say Popeye. 

[(BP)]

53 minutes ago, J.H. said:

Are we really gonna sit here and make like Moscow On The Hudson is remotely watchable?

If a movie stars Maria Conchita Alonso, it is most certainly watchable. 

[J.H.]

Draft Day - I am not a fan of Any Given Sunday. I think most football movies are kind of a chore to sit through (save for the Burt Reynolds version of The Longest Yard). So taking the focus off the actual game to show what goes down for the NFL Draft is... even more tedious to sit through.

It is a stacked cast but football isn't the spirt for me when it comes to cinema. This movie ain't Moneyball, hell this movie ain't even Youngblood!

James

[odessasteps]

North Dallas Forty says hello. 

[J.H.]

2 minutes ago, odessasteps said:

North Dallas Forty says hello. 

That is the exception!

I remember the first time seeing it on a rain day at summer camp. Man the social director of that camp caught hell for that

James

[odessasteps]

Let's see

Drugs, nudity, swearing. 

All the things kids would want in a movie but not their parents. 

[odessasteps]

There's also Brian's Song, one of the few movies where "it's okay for guys to cry at the end." 

(Wrath of Khan being another) 

[Andrew POE!]

Only watched one movie today. Had a lot of work stuff and offline stuff. Crap, I missed out on Draft Day last month.  

The Killing of a Sacred Deer (Max, leaving on 4/30) - 4/5 stars

Spoiler

The Killing of a Sacred Deer tells its story so obliquely that it can be wondered if it's bad writing or bad direction on purpose. Every character speaks with such a droll, deadpan manner that is intentional; it's like Haneke's Funny Games except everyone is closed off from their own anger.

Colin Farrell as Dr. Steven Murphy completes a heart surgery that it's unknown how it went. He meets Martin (Barry Keoghan) and both are closed off way of speaking. What I noticed compared to other Yorgos Lanthimos movies is the camera angle are also more drawn back and at a higher angle. This is intentional and seems to speak again to the characters' emotional state (or their undercurrents of emotions) as well as presenting an eerie atmosphere.

The other thing I noticed with the movie is the sound design - the movie has sound effects that are loud and cavernous. They seem to drown out the dialogue sometimes. The music is also equally eerie especially towards the end.

I noticed something near the start - Steven talks to his colleague and asks about the watch. Steven's watch can only go 100 meters underwater - he buys another watch and gives Martin his former watch. He lies to Martin and tells him it only goes 200 meters underwater. Martin and Steven's relationship is of a manipulative nature - Martin takes advantage of Steven throughout the movie. One thing I find interesting is Martin seemingly has powers over Steven's life and the life of his family. Whether Martin is an angel or a demon or something else entirely is unknown - he is able to experience pain judging by what happens to him later.

The movie title I believe is a metaphor. The 'sacred deer' is a family member. For Steven, which 'sacred deer' will he kill to gain what he wants? His son (Sonny Suljic), his daughter (Raffey Cassidy) or his wife Anna (Nicole Kidman)? Steven makes his choice out of pure blindness and pure dumb luck. He misses twice as he spins around the room with a rifle.

The thing with Yorgos Lanthimos' movies is he doesn't intend for anyone watching to want a connection with the characters. It's almost like an absurdist version of how David Fincher approaches actors - although I think Lanthimos has a better relationship and allows them to contribute where they can.

Even though this isn't one of Lanthimos' best, it is an unusual movie.

 

[Tabe]

15 hours ago, Contentious C said:

• August Rush - quite possibly the stupidest "music prodigy" movie anyone ever made.

I don't care how stupid this movie is. Keri Russell. 

11 hours ago, Contentious C said:

Also confused by it, since that film doesn't exist!

I kid, but he's fucking great in that.  They wrote the role for him and it leans hard into his manic stuff in dribs and drabs but gives those moments more genuine value with a lot of Catholic guilt and very dry deadpan.  Of course I just love that movie generally anyway - as messed up as it is, it actually feels like a comfort movie to me.  I dunno who you'd pick ahead of him, either; I like but don't love any of the other roles that were nominated.  Reynolds?

Williams was awesome in Good Will Hunting. And that movie is amazing. Yeah, the whole economics argument in the bar is stupid but overall it's great. It strikes a lot of chords with me - you nailed it with "comfort movie". 

[Brian Fowler]

7 hours ago, J.H. said:

Draft Day - I am not a fan of Any Given Sunday. I think most football movies are kind of a chore to sit through (save for the Burt Reynolds version of The Longest Yard). So taking the focus off the actual game to show what goes down for the NFL Draft is... even more tedious to sit through.

It is a stacked cast but football isn't the spirt for me when it comes to cinema. This movie ain't Moneyball, hell this movie ain't even Youngblood!

James

I think I've mentioned this before on here, but I have a friend who Draft Day is her favorite movie, so much so that it is the sole reason the Browns are her favorite team.

[J.H.]

On 4/4/2025 at 5:26 AM, Brian Fowler said:

I think I've mentioned this before on here, but I have a friend who Draft Day is her favorite movie, so much so that it is the sole reason the Browns are her favorite team.

Browns fans are the perennial "This is gonna be our year" fans until about 3 games in. Then they start talking about getting guys for the draft. They're fickin adorable

James

Edited April 5 by J.H.

[Mister TV]

17 hours ago, J.H. said:

Are we really gonna sit here and make like Moscow On The Hudson is remotely watchable?

I always remember the first half of that movie being pretty good, the second half isn't bad but more of a sad bore. 

When it comes to 1980's Robin Williams flicks that might be considered bad, I love Club Paradise! 

[(BP)]

Williams appeared in some dogshit movies in the last decade of his life, but he also gave some great performances in imperfect but fascinating smaller films.  I think he’s excellent in World’s Greatest Dad, Boulevard, The Night Listener, and The Final Cut. 

Also, shoutout to his very faithful adaptation of John Irving’s The World According to Garp. 

[Andrew POE!]

I'm surprised that The Bicentennial Man and RV hasn't come up yet about Robin Williams movies.

Edited April 4 by Andrew POE!

[Curt McGirt]

FUCK yes.

[Tabe]

Alright, some more movies:

Scream 4, Scream 5, Scream 6 - These kind of all blended together for me but that's OK.  Definitely a step up from Scream 3.  Not quite sure that the movies all actually made sense but that's OK.  Felt like #6 leaned a little too hard into the "movie rules" theme and misfired a bit as a result.  Interesting also how 6 probably the most violent of the entire series and that people survived that clearly should not have based on their injuries - another thing the earlier movies would not have done.  And this set of movies started doing the "cool quip as somebody gets killed" thing that I feel like the earlier movies would have mocked.  Nice LOL moment in #6 when the handsome neighbor breaks out what looks to be a 20-foot extension ladder he had IN HIS 4TH FLOOR APARTMENT FOR SOME REASON to help people crawl from building to another.  So completely ridiculous.  Whatever.  I enjoyed all three movies and they do still do a good job of subverting expectations.  Screw 'em for killing Dewey though.  7/10 across the board.

 

Cruel Intentions - Sarah Michelle Gellar is Kathryn.  Ryan Phillippe is Sebastian.  They're step-siblings who have the hots for each other but do not act on it (basically).  Instead, they are sociopaths who take great delight in manipulating other people to get what they want - usually sex.  Selma Blair is Cecile, an innocent, naive girl whose naivete and behavior borders on mentally challenged.  She is a target because she is now dating Kathryn's old boyfriend, who we basically never see.  So Kathryn sends Sebastian after her to turn her into a slut.  Reese Witherspoon is Annette, a virginal Mary Sue that is the daughter of their headmaster.  Sebastian bets Kathryn he will deflower Annette - the stakes being his 1956 Jaguar vs an intimate night with Kathryn.  The machinations in this movie are depraved.  A fair bit of this has not aged well - homophobic slurs, borderline date rape, and more.  The cast here is excellent, with Phillippe being PERFECT as the narcissistic rich pretty boy, Gellar the pretty conniver, Witherspoon the pretty innocent, and so on.  It's trashy but doesn't overstay its welcome and pretty people acting badly and then getting their comeuppance never gets old.  6/10.

[Contentious C]

8 minutes ago, Tabe said:

Cruel Intentions - Sarah Michelle Gellar is Kathryn.  Ryan Phillippe is Sebastian.  They're step-siblings who have the hots for each other but do not act on it (basically).  Instead, they are sociopaths who take great delight in manipulating other people to get what they want - usually sex.  Selma Blair is Cecile, an innocent, naive girl whose naivete and behavior borders on mentally challenged.  She is a target because she is now dating Kathryn's old boyfriend, who we basically never see.  So Kathryn sends Sebastian after her to turn her into a slut.  Reese Witherspoon is Annette, a virginal Mary Sue that is the daughter of their headmaster.  Sebastian bets Kathryn he will deflower Annette - the stakes being his 1956 Jaguar vs an intimate night with Kathryn.  The machinations in this movie are depraved.  A fair bit of this has not aged well - homophobic slurs, borderline date rape, and more.  The cast here is excellent, with Phillippe being PERFECT as the narcissistic rich pretty boy, Gellar the pretty conniver, Witherspoon the pretty innocent, and so on.  It's trashy but doesn't overstay its welcome and pretty people acting badly and then getting their comeuppance never gets old.  6/10.

Sometimes I think they remade Dangerous Liaisons this way just because not enough people knew what "liaisons" were and couldn't figure it out from context.

[Brian Fowler]

I think the biggest problem with it as a modernized teen movie version of Les liaisons dangereuses is Cecilie. In the novel, she's a naive fifteen year old who literally has been sheltered in a convent until just before the story starts, who is manipulated and abused by full grown adults with years of experience. When you somewhat level the playing field by making them all teens, she becomes unbelievably stupid.

 

Still, I love the movie. It's the one that introduced me to the story and it's one of my favorite novels ever, and the basis of several very good movies (and an absolutely horrendously bad recent adaptation.)

[(BP)]

The characterization of Cecile in Cruel Intentions makes it feel like the other characters are taking advantage of someone who’s mentally disabled. It’s insane. 

[J.H.]

The Working Man - Jason Statham does things Jason Statham does on film. You leave the theater getting a sense of satisfaction that you paid to this movie and got your money's worth.

Now that we've dispensed with the review here is my pitch for another Jason Statham movie.

Great Expectations, a new movie based on the Dickens novel. You basically the story exactly as put forth in the novel u til... Act 3, Pip must fight his way through a squad of Royal Marines to get to the kidnapped Estella (Helena Bonham Carter) by Mrs. Havesham (Cynthia Rothrock) and Drummie (Yuen Biao). We'll say throw-in Raje Serbeza as Magwitch just for the hell of it!

James

[Tabe]

1 hour ago, (BP) said:

The characterization of Cecile in Cruel Intentions makes it feel like the other characters are taking advantage of someone who’s mentally disabled. It’s insane. 

Yep, that's what I was trying to convey.  She doesn't come across naive or sheltered, she comes across like somebody with the mental capabilities of a young child.

[Andrew POE!]

1 hour ago, J.H. said:

The Working Man - Jason Statham does things Jason Statham does on film. You leave the theater getting a sense of satisfaction that you paid to this movie and got your money's worth.

Now that we've dispensed with the review here is my pitch for another Jason Statham movie.

Great Expectations, a new movie based on the Dickens novel. You basically the story exactly as put forth in the novel u til... Act 3, Pip must fight his way through a squad of Royal Marines to get to the kidnapped Estella (Helena Bonham Carter) by Mrs. Havesham (Cynthia Rothrock) and Drummie (Yuen Biao). We'll say throw-in Raje Serbeza as Magwitch just for the hell of it!

James

Can't wait for Jason Statham to do the sequel, Our Mutual Friend.

[J.H.]

Jason Statham IS Felix Unger!                 Dennis Franz IS Oscar Madison!         

In the NEW NEW NEW Odd Couple!

Felix: [barely audible voice] I thought I told you to clean your fuckin room. I just walked and the room ain't fuckin clean now innit?

James

Edited April 5 by J.H.

[Andrew POE!]

15 minutes ago, J.H. said:

Jason Statham IS Felix Unger!                 Dennis Franz IS Oscar Madison!         

In the NEW NEW NEW Odd Couple!

Felix: [barely audible voice] I thought I told you to clean your fuckin room. I just walked and the room ain't fuckin clean now innit?

James

The Odd Couple with Jason Statham would have my fuckin money.

[Andrew POE!]

Movies today....had to do adulting. It took too damn long.

The Friend (saw in the theaters) - 4.5/5 stars

Spoiler

The Friend as a movie is a bit of a comfort food movie and back to the time when Hollywood made movies set in New York City with characters that have intelligence and literary backgrounds. The Friend fits with the same upper middle class fantasies of Nancy Meyers or Woody Allen movies except it's much more reflective and serious.

With this, the focus of the movie is on Iris (Naomi Watts). Her character is a writer (who went to Berkeley and teaches in a writing workshop) and narrates her written thoughts about a writer friend named Walter (Bill Murray), who committed suicide. After the funeral, Iris comes to find out that Walter wanted her to have his Great Dane Apollo.

The entirety of the movie is the emotional arc of Iris as she relates to Apollo. The apartment complex she lives in wants her to get the dog out now. She tries to have the dog visit Walter's wife at passing Tuesday (Constance Wu), which doesn't end well. Apollo lays down on a couch and that was it - he can't stay.

Throughout the movie, Iris has to deal with being warned about the dog and eventually evicted. All the while, Apollo is missing his person Walter but eventually bonds with Iris. I found interesting the scenes where the dog perks up when someone is reading out loud something written. The Thomas Hardy poem "My Spirit Will Not Haunt The Mound" is read on a ship and the dog walks up to the reader and pays attention. This is noted throughout the movie - there's something absolutely sweet about a companion pet noticing things like that. Apollo can't talk or speak back, but he can be present.

Since this movie is in the tradition of Nancy Meyers/Woody Allen movies in New York City, it tends to skew a bit older with the references. I absolutely loved the scene where Apollo and Iris are walking through a crowd in the streets set to a version of "Everybody's Talking To Me" (which makes it a nice reference to Midnight Cowboy). The movie in some ways is a holiday movie too - It's A Wonderful Life is shown and later Iris talks about how there's 'not an angel to prevent someone from committing suicide.'

The scenes toward the end with Murray and Watts are a nice bit of imagined meta-textual aspects in the movie. Watts' character Iris is writing a story about Walter and a dachshund and talk through what Walter did when he killed himself and what he left behind. There's elements of gallows humor and sentimentality in the scenes as Iris works through her grief.

The scenes toward the end has Iris and Apollo visiting a beach house with Walter's daughter. At one point, Apollo is lying on the beach - which made Iris stop for a second and wonder if he had died. Nope, he's fine and just looks over at Iris like, "What?"

The drawback for this is the movie won't really speak to a lot of people today. The movie seems to vaguely reference "how things are today" without calling out what that consist of.

Even then, The Friend is worth seeing.

Hell of a Summer (saw in the theaters) - 3/5 stars

Spoiler

The movie is such a homage to 1980s horror movies like Friday The 13th and A Nightmare On Elm Street (strangely no one had sex, which always happens in those types of movies).

The highlight is Fred Hechinger as Jason, who is clearly in his 40s but can't seem to get past his early 20s (it's okay, I have the same problem at times, so I get it).

The movie won't win awards or be a classic, but it's a nice homage.

The Innocent (Mubi, leaving on 4/6) - no rating

Spoiler

Utterly lush and evocative movie that I'm sad to say I didn't really get to be absorbed in due to watching the movie at a car tire shop where the service took 3 fucking hours to get done. So I watched the first hour and 30 minutes there, then had to leave once the car was done, then saw two other movies today, caught the next 30 minutes while waiting for those movies in the ads/previews and being at home, then finally finished the last 10 minutes at home today.

I'm going to buy the Blu Ray and do a re-watch of this and give it a better review. Still, even then it's a great Italian drama and Tullio Hermil (Giancarlo Giannini)'s character arc compared to Teresa Raffo (Jennifer O'Neill) and Giuliana Hermil (Laura Antonelli) contrasted against each other.

Life getting in the way of movies smh.

The Watchmaker of St. Paul / The Clockmaker of St. Paul / The Clockmaker (Criterion Channel, leaving on 4/30) - 3.5/5 stars

Spoiler

What makes The Watchmaker of St. Paul interesting is it does something different with crime dramas. Michel Descombes (Philippe Noiret) is not interested in seeking to exonerate his son for his crime. Instead, he wants to know why his son and simply just accepts his son on face value. It's almost a Dostoevskyian way of doing the story - Descombes has already resigned his son Bernard (Sylvain Rougerie) to his fate. It's just what's to be done in the aftermath is the question.

As the movie pursues this thought process, Descombes has somewhat of a friendship with the police inspector Guilboud (Jean Rochefort). In a lot of ways, Guilboud also just accepts Descombes' son at face value. He's more drawn back due to the nature of his work as a police inspector.

What I found interesting is how Bernard Tavernier did the introductory scenes - a car is burning in the title credits (with the score in an almost John Barry fashion) and Descombes is eating dinner with friends as they discuss the union activities in France. Politics of the time is brought up throughout the movie - the thought process from the inspector and from the police is that Bernard's crime was political in nature. Eventually, as more information is discovered, it is drawn to the personal and the relationship between Bernard and the girl Lilliane (Christine Pascal). When that is discounted, Bernard is simply defending her honor with the relationship coming up later.

What makes the movie work so well is the sense of history and location with being shot in Lyon. It felt more like characters in a definable place rather than something made to resemble a place.

The bulk of the movie is on the relationships between Descombes and the inspector, then Descombes and his friend, and finally Descombes and Bernard. Descombes wonders if Bernard's actions are a failure on his part; the other characters act as either confirmation or rejection of the notion.

The movie leaves the viewer with no definitive answers as to Bernard's fate other than 20 years in prison. I admired the scene where Descombes learns this; he is beside himself in sadness. Both he and his friend feel that France has it out against them on the basis of their social status; but it's too late for them.