Ryan McNeil
With NXNE coverage taking over the front-burner last weekend, the usual watchlist post was omitted. That might not have been the worst thing as the last two weeks have been so bloody bonkers that the overall tally was down slightly.
That’s the downside. The upside is that I finally finished watching season one of Hannibal, so I’m slowly-but-surely catching up to all the fuss!
But crazy times still lay ahead, so even though there are still a zillion things I want to watch, my scorecards might be sticking to single digits for a little while longer.
Here’s The Two Weeks at Hand…
Screenings
INNOCENT STRANGERS – Wow – this was glorious!
CHEF – damn, I’d just stopped feeling hungry
MAN OF IRON – Sorta cold, but a great watch.
HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON 2 – Y’all don’t know what you’re missing.
Blu-Rays/DVD’s I’ve Never Seen
LET’S RUIN IT WITH BABIES – NXNE Screener. I wanna ride in that RV. Badly.
LIES I TOLD MY LITTLE SISTER – NXNE Screener. Just what I needed on a Sunday morning
DRAGONSLAYER – Neat lizard. Other than that…
YOU CAN COUNT ON ME – Thanks to Huls for the suggestion, and Pierce for the lend
REIGN OF FIRE – Oh man, that’s gonna leave a mark.
THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE – Would you believe this was my first Lana Turner film?
Blu-Rays/DVD’s I’ve Seen Before
LOOPER – Who else can’t wait for some Johnston-infused Star Wars
ACE IN THE HOLE – Why I’ll always be thankful I dug into Wilder.
DIRTY DANCING – Listened to the podcast yet?
HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON – Still bloody gorgeous
NASHVILLE – Getting my mitts on this soundtrack is becoming a quest.
Recently, I haven’t been seeing a lot of films because of the World Cup which has been great so far.
In First-Timers, I saw Chef, X-Men: Days of Future Past, Matador, and some films of Douglas Sirk in All That Heaven Allows, Shockproof, Magnificent Obsession, and today, my Blind Spot assignment in Imitation of Life.
In re-watches: The Jewel of the Nile, The Conformist, Rudo y Cursi, An American Rhapsody, Batman Begins, and Flags of Our Fathers.
Big day for you today then – good luck with The Germans.
How did you take to ALL THAT HEAVEN ALLOWS? I’m quite smitten with it, but gotta believe that 1950’s melodrama isn’t for everybody.
From your films I’ve seen only Looper which was very good although I had some issues with it. I am more a Brick fan. Glad the guy got the job. It’s a great choice. I also have seen How to train your dragon but don’t remember much of it.
No, I haven’t seen Baby put in a corner.
I am just now realizing how many films I’ve watched this week.
Lucky Them – I don’t see the big whoop about this one. It’s not that great. I mean, yes, Toni Collette is in it and that’s always something I welcome but it didn’t do much for me. There wasn’t weren’t many conversations about music as I believe it should have been. But that cameo at the end surprised me and it was well cast.
A Fish Called Wanda – The funniest film I’ve seen in a long time.
Blue Ruin – Interesting for an indie film. I listened to your show on it after. I pretty much agree with your opinions.
The Tree of Life – Rewatch. Got swept up by the praise on its initial release. It’s very good and beautiful to look at but not mind blowing.
A Million Ways To Die In The West – A few good jokes like the way they took photographs and how Miss America looked like in the late 1800’s. A few good observations but not that funny. It’s still great to see a western comedy. We don’t get them that often.
In Cold Blood – Outstanding film. The tears from rain effect at the end was very effective.
Ida – Just wonderful.
The Haunting – It’s great stuff but when watching a film considered the most frightening one you come in with a set of expectations. And why didn’t Julie Harris win an Oscar for this?
The Fault in Our Stars – Alright for a teen film. I didn’t cry or anything or get dusty as the guys from Filmspotting call it.
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon – The fight scenes left me stunned. Surprisingly I didn’t mind the flying. The actors were extraordinary. It’s a pretty perfect film. Unfortunately I watched the dubbed version. Bad decision.
22 Jump Street – So much fun. It’s such a smart sequel. I liked the meta jokes and the end credits. Does that mean we don’t get a third part?
Watched a few episodes of Bob’s Burgers. It’s funny and kooky. I watch it when I eat.
Also watched the last episode of Mad Men again and then the first episode of the series. They looked like babies in the first episode. What a shock. I love this show.
That’s a solid week of watching! Not only that, but it’s a pretty good reminder to me that I’m way overdue for a TREE OF LIFE rewatch. The hype around it is a little bonkers (guilty!), but I think a lot of that comes from where it takes viewers’ thoughts. The best analogy I heard on it compared it to watching a symphony…you are witnessing beauty, soaking it in and allowing your brain to spiral, but there’s no real “story”
I’d be curious to read your take on DIRTY DANCING if you ever gave it a first-time watch.
I didn’t care too much for Looper (I know… re-watch it!) but I do think he’s a great choice for the Star Wars films. Looking forward to what he can cook up, although I suppose it all hinges on JJ’s film being good first. For the first time in many years, I’m actually excited about Star Wars. Cautious, but excited.
As for me: Big time period… low amount of films. Seems to be my MO these days.
First time: (all anime!)
Voices of a Distant Star
Black Jack
And I re-watched:
Lord of Illusions – A lot better than I remember. I’ve become a much bigger fan of Clive Barker in the years since I saw this last, so that explains it. I now understand that his horror is never trying to be anything like traditional horror.
You keep schooling my ass on titles I haven’t even heard of…let alone seen.
Your mention of LOOPER seems like a good companion to Cristian’s mention of TREE OF LIFE. Both films were hyped to the hilt when they dropped, so it was easy to come away just lukewarm. Do revisit it sometime – and if I might make a suggestion, make it the back-half of a double-feature with Peter Weir’s WITNESS.