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Re: Movies

Posted: Sat Oct 26, 2019 12:56 pm
by Rusty
:8510:
303 - My LIfe as a Zucchini - 8.5/10 - A young boy is sent to a group foster home for kids when his alcoholic mother dies. He learns to make friends and trust people again at the home. I thought it was very well done.

:7510:
304 - A Cat in Paris - 7.5/10 - A police superintendent is trying to juggle work and taking care of her daughter after the death of her husband in the line of duty. The daughter hasn't spoken since her father's death and the mother is trying to track down his killer as well as a cat burglar who is stealing lots of money and jewelry. The cases intersect with the aid of the family cat. It was pretty good.

Re: Movies

Posted: Sun Oct 27, 2019 11:09 pm
by Rusty
:710:
305 - Dillinger - 7/10 - This was a decent crime movie/biopic of John Dillinger from the 1940s.

Re: Movies

Posted: Mon Oct 28, 2019 10:56 am
by Rusty
:710:
306 - King of the Zombies - 7/10 - This was a fun low budget zombie movie that was perhaps supposed to be serious, but is really a comedy. During WWII, two men and their servant crash land on an island in the Caribbean where a strange doctor gives them lodging, but also is keeping a number of secrets. The real star of the show is Mantan Moreland who portrays the servant, Jeff.

:710:
307 - Second Chorus - 7/10 - Fred Astaire and Burgess Meredith portray trumpet players who have been in college seemingly forever and have no plans to graduate. They are each pursuing a singer (Paulette Goddard) who acts as their manager and play a number of dirty tricks on each other along the way. They get an opportunity to audition for a big time band leader, but continue with their sabotage. It isn't a great film.but I enjoyed it.

:610:
308 - Dancing Pirate - 6/10 - A dancing instructor in Boston in 1820 is shanghaied by pirates and forced to serve on their ship. He escapes when the ship stops near San Francisco. He is mistaken for a pirate by the locals and threatened with hanging, but a local girl falls for him. The movie is watchable and has a few entertaining parts, but is rather dull and not very good overall.

:6510:
309 - Hi Diddle Diddle - 6.5/10 - A sailor arrives home to marry his girl and finds that another suitor is trying to break up the planned marriage. The sailor's father is a swindler and a series of money making hijinx ensue. It was certainly watchable and I thought it was okay, though not that good really.

Re: Movies

Posted: Tue Oct 29, 2019 5:50 pm
by Rusty
:7510:
310 - Block-Heads - 7.5/10 - Laurel and Hardy are soldiers during WWI. Laurel is ordered to stand guard until relieved at a trench headquarters while the rest of the troop charges enemy lines. Fast forward to 1938 and Hardy is now married with his first anniversary at hand. Laurel is still standing guard, but soon finds out that the war has been over for 20 years. The two eventually reunite and things don't go as planned for Hardy. I thought this was fun, though not their best.

:610:
311 - All-American Co-Ed - 6/10 - There isn't really very much to this short film. A college man infiltrates a women's college disguised as a co-ed. He helps set up their variety show which is being staged to gain publicity for the school. It was entertaining enough to watch, but was fairly bland.

:4510:
312 - Minstrel Man - 4.5/10 - A Vaudeville star loses his wife and is separated from his young daughter. He is thought to be dead for a long time, but eventually returns. It was a pretty dull movie and the lead wasn't impressive. There is also a ton of blackface.

Re: Movies

Posted: Fri Nov 01, 2019 9:30 am
by Rusty
:710:
313 - Terminal Station - 7/10 - An American woman is heading home from Italy after breaking off a relationship with a teacher who lives there. She is married and is returning to her husband, but breaking up is hard to do. The movie takes place entirely at the train station. It was kind of slow moving and the relationship parts seemed kind of forced, but there were interesting parts as well.

Re: Movies

Posted: Sat Nov 02, 2019 9:36 am
by Rusty
:7510:
314 - Dogtooth - 7.5/10 - This Greek film is very strange, yet compelling as well. A man keeps his family within a compound that has high walls and is far away from the city. This includes his two adult daughters and an adult son along with their mother. The son and daughters are kept ignorant of many things and are still like children in many ways. Their only real tie to the outside world is a woman named Christina that the the father brings in occasionally for sex with the son and company for the daughters.

Re: Movies

Posted: Sun Nov 03, 2019 11:23 am
by Rusty
:810:
315 - Paradise Now - 8/10 - Two young Palestinan men have been friends since childhood. They work as auto mechanics, but are generally dissatisfied with their life. They are part of a cell that is planning a suicide bombing in Israel and their time is close at hand, though not everything goes as planned. The movie is pretty introspective and there isn't any real violence in the film. I thought it was very well done.

:7510:
316 - Ida - 7.5/10 - A young novice is almost ready to take her vows to be a nun in Poland in 1962. She was raised in the convent as an orphan, but discovers that she has an aunt who wants to see her and get to know her. This visit leads to her finding out who she was and where she came from. It is beautifully shot in black and white and is pretty well acted.

:8510:
317 - Tangerines - 8.5/10 - During the Georgian civil war in 1992, a small village of Estonians lies empty, except for two men who have remained while the rest of the villagers have gone back to Estonia. Ivo makes crates for tangerines and Margus is trying to get his tangerine crop harvested before going back to Estonia. When small groups from the opposing sides get into a short battle in town, all of the soldiers are killed, except for one wounded soldier from each side. Ivo brings them into his home to care for them. This was very well done and is worth seeing.

:710:
318 - The Woman of the Town - 7/10 - The movie starts with Bat Masterson in 1919 where he works as a reporter and flashes back to his time in Dodge City where he was marshal. I thought it was entertaining.

Re: Movies

Posted: Mon Nov 04, 2019 10:13 am
by Rusty
:8510:
319 - Waltz with Bashir - 8.5/10 - In 2006, an Israeli filmmaker realizes that he has no memory of his time as a 19 year old soldier in Lebanon. He seeks out friends and others who served there to see what they remember and some of it starts coming back to him. His mind has blocked out the memories of war, including the Sabra and Shatila massacre. The movie is animated and follows his search as to what happened there. It is definitely worth watching.

:710:
320 - The Son of Monte Cristo - 7/10 - Dantes goes to Lichtenburg where a general is plotting to get himself placed on the throne as King and is holding the Grand Duchess prisoner. Dantes disguises himself as the masked hero, Torch, as part of his plan to free the Duchess. This wasn't that great for the first half, but I thought it got much better in the second half.

:7510:
321 - Something to Sing About - 7.5/10 - I enjoyed this musical which stars James Cagney as a singer/bandleader who is recruited to act in a Hollywood picture. He becomes a star, but has to hide his marriage to continue his movie career. This leads to a few problems when the studio is promoting his 'relationship' with a Hollywood starlet.

:610:
322 - Nurse Edith Cavell - 6/10 - A rather dull film about the British nurse during the first World War who was executed by the Germans for helping Allied soldiers escape from Axis controlled countries.

Re: Movies

Posted: Tue Nov 05, 2019 11:54 pm
by Rusty
:6510:
323 - Svengali - 6.5/10 - Svengali uses his hypnotism powers to control a beautiful young lady and turn her into a popular singer. However, he can not control her heart and make her love him. It was okay. The girl was probably the best part of the movie.

Re: Movies

Posted: Wed Nov 06, 2019 7:31 pm
by Rusty
:6510:
324 - Winterset - 6.5/10 - In 1920, an immigrant is convicted of a crime that he didn't commit and is then executed. More than 15 years later, his son (Burgess Meredith) sets out to clear his father's name and bring the real killer to justice. It had a few interesting parts, but overall was pretty dull.

:710:
325 - Sundown - 7/10 - A WWII film from 1941 that takes place in British East Africa. A major arrives at a British outpost to take over command. A Dutch engineer is doing a mineral survey in the area. A Nazi agent is smuggling weapons. These and other plotlines (including a woman who is part native and part British) intersect in a rather pedestrian, but watchable film.

Re: Movies

Posted: Fri Nov 08, 2019 2:53 pm
by Rusty
:7510:
326 - Red Garters - 7.5/10 - This movie is a spoof of musicals and westerns. It is bright and colorful and I enjoyed it.

:910:
327 - Shoeshine - 9/10 - Giuseppe and Pasquale are shoeshine boys in Italy during the U.S. occupation toward the end of WWII. They are saving up money to buy a horse because they love to ride when they get arrested because they were dupes in a robbery. They are taken to juvenile prison and their relationship is tested by events there. It is an excellent film.

:810:
328 - Gate of Hell - 8/10 - In 1160, two lords stage a coup when another powerful lord is away with some of his retainers. Morito stays loyal and uses Kesa, a lady in waiting, to create a diversion. He later brings word to his lord about the coup. As a reward, he asks the lord to help him marry Kesa. However, she is married and loyal to her husband so this presents a few problems.

:7510:
329 - War Witch - 7.5/10 - 12 year old Komona lives in a small village in Africa. She is forced to kill her parents and become a child soldier when rebels attack her village. When a couple of strange things occur around her, she is dubbed a witch and gains some status. Her life over the next two years has a number of ups and downs. It was a decent movie.

Re: Movies

Posted: Sat Nov 09, 2019 7:43 pm
by Rusty
:8510:
330 - Zombieland 2: Double Tap - 8.5/10 - 10 years have passed since the events of the first movie and the four stars of that film are now living in the White House. Life has gotten kind of routine and they each want something more in their own way. Plenty more fun and zombie killing with a trip to Graceland mixed in. I thought it was just as much fun as the original.

Re: Movies

Posted: Sun Nov 10, 2019 7:26 pm
by Rusty
:810:
331 - Fighting with My Family - 8/10 - The story of Soraya "Paige" Bevis who was raised in a family that ran local wrestling shows and who ended up in the WWE. I thought it was pretty entertaining.

:8510:
332 - Dad - 8.5/10 - Ted Danson stars as a man who returns home to care for his father (Jack Lemmon) after his mother (Olympia Dukakis) is hospitalized. He is doing great with his father until his father's own health issues crop up. I thought this was a very touching and well acted film. Ethan Hawke plays the grandson.

Re: Movies

Posted: Mon Nov 11, 2019 11:45 am
by Rusty
:910:
333 - Forbidden Games - 9/10 - In 1940, a number of Parisians are migrating to escape the Nazi advance. Paulette is a five year old girl whose parents are killed during a strafing run by German planes. She ends up with a nearby peasant family and becomes close with 10 year old Michel. The effects of the war intermixed with the innocence of youth makes for a very good film.

:710:
334 - Black and White in Color - 7/10 - This is set in West Africa in 1915. Life is pretty boring in the French colony there. Through a shipment of newspapers, they discover that France and Germany have been at war for a while. They decide that it is their patriotic duty to attack the nearby German settlement and it ends with disastrous results. The movie is a comedy and drama and I think it had the potential to be a lot better, though it wasn't bad.

:810:
335 - The Chorus - 8/10 - In 1949, a new prefect arrives at a boys boarding school in France that is run more like a junior prison. He faces resistance, but eventually wins the boys in his class over and has them form a chorus. The headmaster believes in strict and sometimes brutal discipline and the two are at odds.

:7510:
336 - Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown - 7.5/10 - A somewhat crazy movie about an actress who tries to find out why her lover left her so abruptly. The characters are kind of eccentric, but it was fun.

Re: Movies

Posted: Tue Nov 12, 2019 9:04 pm
by Rusty
:710:
337 - The Three Caballeros - 7/10 - Donald Duck receives a number of birthday presents which leads him to having fun in various places in South America and Central America. Lots of music and dancing in this mix of animation and live action.