Malcolm1980's 2016 Movie Review Thread

[malcolm1980]

1/22

Miracle in Milan (Vittorio DeSica) *** - An abandoned baby is found in a cabbage patch by kindly old woman. When she dies, the young boy goes into an orphanage and he grows up into a kind, optimistic young man who decides to take it upon himself to help out a shanty makeshift town through the help of a wishing dove given to him by the ghost of his adoptive mother. It's actually not that weird. Okay, maybe it is kind of quirky and it kind of works. It's a neorealist film but it is more cheerful than most despite the fact that it depicts poverty. It has an almost Tati-esque sort of humor about it. It's not my favorite DeSica but it is a solid enough fantasy dramedy.

Mighty Joe Young (Ernest B. Schoedsack) *** - A young girl growing up in Africa raises and befriends a gorilla named Joe. They meet a night club owner who wants to take them to America to be an attraction for his new night club. This is kind of a kinder, gentler King Kong from the same people who made that movie (no surprise there). I saw the remake starring Charlize Theron and I think this film holds up better than that movie. The stop-motion animation may not be as slick as modern-day CGI but it does have a certain charm that still impresses. It's no King Kong but it's still a very enjoyable adventure flick.

[malcolm1980]

1/23

Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom (Evegny Afineevsky) ***1/2 - Continuing on with my Netflix free trial with this recently Oscar-nominated documentary on the peaceful protest turned violent revolution in the Ukraine where protestors are calling for the resignation of the president due to his rejection of EU integration and his intention of instead reuniting with Russia. This happened in late 2013 and early 2014. I can't believe I didn't know much about this event (I only know of Putin's invasion of Crimea, that's it). Thanks to this documentary, it has now enlightened me on what happened in this part of the world. It's a shocking, harrowing but ultimately inspiring portrait of a people united for a cause and will not take shit lying down. It's definitely worth a watch.

The Big Short (Adam McKay) *** - Anchorman director Adam McKay turns into a serious (well, somewhat, it's still a comedy after all) filmmaker in this film about how the massive economic catastrophe of 2008 due to the collapse of the housing market caused by bad loans and banking deregulation. The film is compelling and though I was sort of lost with all the Wall Street and banking jargon (despite the humorous cutaways of celebrity cameos trying to simplify it for the layman), I still cared. The performances of the ensemble cast are all good and the film's heart is in the right place and I agree that this story is Important with a capital I. But the film is kind of a mess and often veers into preachiness at times. McKay still has trouble balancing the humor and the seriousness of the subject matter. It's still a worthwhile effort though. But I recommend checking out Inside Job.

Five Easy Pieces (Bob Rafelson) ***1/2 - This is yet another film under "Why Haven't I Seen That Yet" list. Cross this one off finally. A piano prodigy who has been living as a lower-class blue collar worker returns home to his upper-middle class eccentric musician family after he finds out his father is dying. Jack Nicholson is outstanding as the man trying to run away from his roots. It's probably one of my top five Jack Nicholson performances of all time. Karen Black is also great as his aspiring country singer girlfriend. Is it just me or do lot of the modern day American indie movies borrow heavily from this film?

[malcolm1980]

1/24

Cartel Land (Matthew Heinemann) **1/2 - By virtue of seeing this, I've officially have seen all five Best Documentary Feature Oscar nominees! (YAY!) First year this has happened. Okay. How was this? This is based on the title, about the drug cartels and two vigilante groups that formed as a response to the horrors this system has inflicted upon the populace especially on rural villages near the border. One is an American who took it upon himself to patrol the borders and the other is a group of Mexicans who decide to take matters into their own hands. The second part about the Mexicans is compelling stuff. Harrowing, eye-opening and even has a shocking turn of events. It's almost like a real-life Sicario. The one about the American? Eh, not so much. I think it slowed the film down and didn't really go anywhere. It kept this from being a truly great documentary.

[malcolm1980]

1/25

Death Proof (Quentin Tarantino) ***1/2 - I'm a Quentin Tarantino fan but somehow I've been neglecting to see this one. His tribute to grindhouse exploitation films and his half of the "Grindhouse" movie anthology, this one is about a stuntman who stalks and kills women with his "death proof" car. Some people consider this Tarantino's "weakest" film and some people consider it his most underrated film. In a way, I actually think it's a little bit of both. It's not Tarantino's best film but at the same time, it's not a bad film. It's still a sold, very enjoyable geeky sub-genre exercise by the director. Self-indulgent? Sure. But enjoyably so.

The Asphalt Jungle (John Huston) *** - A group of veteran criminals are recruited by a money-strapped lawyer to pull off a jewel heist. Of course, things go wrong. I honestly wanted to like this more than I did. Don't get me wrong. It's still a pretty darn good heist/film noir film but I don't think it's one of the top-tier of the genre. In fact, I think Rififi did a somewhat similar story and concept a heckuva lot better, at least in my opinion. It's still a fine, worthwhile film featuring a fine ensemble cast including Marilyn Monroe in one of her earliest roles.

[malcolm1980]

1/26

Bone Tomahawk (S. Craig Zahler) ***1/2 - Set in the Old West, three people are abducted by a tribe of cannibalistic cave-dwelling Native Americans and it's up to four men to rescue them. This movie is really something else. A slow-burn Western that brilliantly combines elements of pure horror in a wildly imaginative and effective manner. Despite its slow, deliberate, it is never boring and it builds and builds on the tension and when the horror hits, it is gnarly, horrifying and quite effective. The film is classily made and beautifully shot with everyone playing it straight and giving it their all. A fine, fine entry in both the Western genre and the horror genre. It is destined to be a cult classic.

[malcolm1980]

1/27

Where the Sidewalk Ends (Otto Preminger) *** - A police detective is recently demoted and reprimanded for being too rough on suspects. While working on a case, he accidentally kills a man he was questioning. He decides to cover it up. Then he falls for the man's estranged wife. Though the film itself is just good, what makes this film special are the performances of Dana Andrews and Gene Tierney. But especially Tierney who managed to turn what would have been just another "girl" role into something special especially in her last moments. It's far from Preminger's best but it's still an overall fine film noir.

[malcolm1980]

1/28

Les Enfants Terribles (Jean-Pierre Melville) ***1/2 - After a teenage boy gets injured by a snowball thrown by the boy he has a crush on, his older sister nurses him back to health. Thus begins our journey with these siblings who share a tempestuous, competitive, antagonistic with more a little incestuous feelings going on for good measure. The film is directed Jean Pierre Melville but scripted by Jean Cocteau based on his own novel. Watching this film, it does feel more like a Cocteau film than a Melville film. It's got themes of forbidden and unrequited love, homoeroticism and fantastical/surreal imagery. I think it would have been even better had Cocteau directed it himself but it's still a very good film regardless. It's neither man's best work but it's still quite a strange little drama which fans of both artists should really check out.

[malcolm1980]

1/29

Theeb (Naji Abu Nowar) ***1/2 - Okay. Add Jordan in the list countries I have seen at least one film from. And it's a very good one. It's one of this year's nominees for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar. Set during World War I, it tells the story of a young Bedouin boy who tags along his older brother in escorting an English officer across the desert on a secret mission. It's an exemplary, well-crafted coming-of-age adventure drama that is a bit like Lawrence of Arabia from the point of view of that one lowly young boy. A small drama amidst an epic location. It's always wonderful to see films like this and to see stories from the eyes of a different culture and background.

Born Yesterday (George Cukor) *** - A crooked junkyard lobbyist goes to Washington with his dumb blonde girlfriend. In order for her not to be too embarrassing, he hires a writer to "teach her how to talk good" but the plan backfires. I actually saw the Melanie Griffith remake years ago so I'm familiar with the story. Judy Holliday won the Best Actress Oscar and I can definitely see why. She is a dumb blonde, sure and she's funny in those scenes but she manages to shine when she reveals that she's more than just a dumb blonde. The film overall is pretty good but not really a comedic masterpiece. But worth seeing for the performances.

[malcolm1980]

1/30

Rio Grande (John Ford) *** - A cavalry officer battling hostile Apaches in his area finds out that his long estranged son has been assigned to his fort and is followed by his long estranged wife. Though this film is extremely well-made (it's a John Ford film, what do you expect?), it kind of almost plays like a "greatest hits" album. John Ford and John Wayne have made far better films before and will make far better films after this. It is not top-tier Ford but by itself, it's still a pretty darn good Western. Just don't expect anything life-changing.

The Diary of a Teenage Girl (Marielle Heller) ** - A coming-of-age story about a 15 year old girl who loses her virginity to her mother's boyfriend and has an affair with him. The film didn't exactly make me jump up and down. I've seen better coming-of-age films of this sort, including the teenage girl-older man sub genre. Despite the terrific performances of Bel Powley, Alexander Skarsgard and Kristen Wiig (who showed off some surprising dramatic chops in this film), They're the reasons to see this film. I really didn't particularly care for this one. I mean, it's an admirable film. Marielle Heller is a promising filmmaker. But it felt a tad too long and its message just a bit hammered a little too loudly.

[malcolm1980]

1/31

Iris (Albert Maysles) **1/2 - The final film from half of the Brothers Maysles is about Iris Apfel, a flamboyant, octogenarian fashion icon who considered a pioneer and a trailblazer in the fashion and design industries. I don't know much about fashion and I have minimal interest in it but it's still about the arts so I try to keep an open mind. Unfortunately, the film never rises above "mildly interesting" for me. I mean, it's a fine film. But it's quite lightweight and there's very little someone who has next to no interest in fashion to hold on to. I would recommend this to people who are already interested in the subject matter.