I realised that a lot of people might now know about Randy and his RB kitty Owen who do our monthly movie reviews. I am thankful for their talent and ability to review movies clearly and honestly, that I thought I would introduce them to Brian’s Thankful Thursday Hop.
Howdy gang!
It’s been a minute due to work obligations. I’ve been to the movies but haven’t had time to write anything because I’ve been getting up at 3 to go to work. The drive is almost an hour each way so I’ve been too tired to write, but now I’m back! Let’s hop to it!
Hustlers
This is based on an article about 4 exotic dancers who started robbing their johns because times got rough. Jennifer Lopez was getting a lot of accolades for her performance, but to me she was Ok, not great. If you enjoyed movies like Vice and Recount then you’ll enjoy this. An inoffensive film but not up to the qualities of those two.
- Worth seeing in theaters but I wouldn’t rush out.
Joker
This is a great film. Tremendous performance from Joaquin Phoenix. He is essentially the movie. He plays Arthur Fleck, a man as down on his luck as could be, who slowly losses it and becomes the Joker. There are some disturbing stuff in here, stuff that made me recoil. I get where some people might have problems with some of the content. I didn’t but I understand if someone would. This is not a movie for everyone, and that’s because of the content. If you want to see a great film go see this.
- I say See It Now but with an asterisk. There will be some disturbing scenes but when you make a film about a man becoming an insane violent criminal this is what the film will look like.
Lucy In The Sky
I did not care for this. Made by the man behind the Legion TV Show on FX, I should’ve expected this. Some weird scene framing choices, some weird narrative choices, but Natalie Portman redeems this movie somewhat. I felt this movie could’ve used some better editing choices, or at least someone to reign in the director in.
- Wait for it show up on TV and save the money.
Zombieland: Double Tap
Looking for a fun time? This movie is a fun time. Great chemistry among the cast, fun sequences, and updating the world they live in.
- Looking to kill 90 minutes and leave the theater having enjoyed an escapist movie? Then take some time to See This In Theaters.
The Lighthouse
Probably one of my Top 5 movies of the year. It is eccentric, weird, and awesome. Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe play two lighthouse keepers stuck on an island during a storm and go crazy. There was some weird stuff but in a good way. It was shot in black and white shot with a square box ratio. Pattinson and Dafoe gave great performances here as well.
- See It Now
Terminator: Dark Fate
I’m a fan of the Terminator movies but this one struggled to make a dent with me. Action is great, but it’s a rehash of the typical Terminator films. It tries too hard with trying to making some snappy quips, and the plot is too weak/familiar for my liking.
I would like to see them steer away somewhat from killer robots chasing the future savior while they’re a kid plot line. Outside of that it’s somewhat enjoyable but suffers from a simplistic plot and bad dialogue. Natalia Reyes impresses as the new savior.
Nice to see Linda Hamilton back kicking ass but I want to see something new from Arnold Schwarzenegger when it comes to the Terminator role. I feel like the movie needs to find someone who has a new vision for what a Terminator movie could be.
- See It In Theaters but I wouldn’t rush out.
Parasite
This is a film from South Korea (it’s subtitled BTW) about a poor family who infiltrate a rich family’s life but it takes a twist about halfway through. This is also in my Top 5 for the year. Everything about it is excellent. I loved this movie, something completely different from what I’ve seen this year.
- It’s new and different and original and awesome. Highest recommendation to See This Now.
Motherless Brooklyn
Edward Norton wrote, directed and starred in this film noir about a gumshoe with Tourette’s. There’s a lot of plot threads going on, and I got kinda lost at one point. There’s great actors galore in this and they all did well, but no real stand outs. Made like the old detective films from the 40’s and 50’s, this is basically a throwback to those days, but with more going on. It’s based on a novel, and it feels like it, which is not a bad thing. As I watched it it felt like a book unfolding on screen.
- Tends to slow down some, but worth Seeing In Theaters at some point.
No theater going anecdotes this week, see ya at the movies!
Thanks for joining the Thankful Thursday Blog Hop, we appreciate you!
Wow, some really interesting films out there at the moment, and plenty to wait for on the streaming services.
Thanks for the great insights, which as ever make our month extra special.
Purrs
ERin
PS, the last two really piqued Mrs H’s and my interest, so we will try and see those first.
Great recap. I’d heard of some of these but didn’t know what they were about. We’re putting movies on hold until we finish Game of Thrones.
Thanks for the scoop! We don’t go to movies so we would have never known about any of those!