The last movie you saw Thread

[Inanna]

Pat-pat.

[Jude]

Is it on netflix?

[Voronwë the Faithful]

I haven't seen it, though I would like to at some point. I will say that while the movie has generally been well-received, but it has generated a fair amount of controversy. The actual population in Washington Heights has a very high percentage of a Afro Latinos, the main cast is all light-skinned actors. That has generated accusations of colorism against Lin-Manuel Miranda, the film's director, Jon Chu and others involved in the production. Miranda acknowledged the controversy and apologized in a statement released on twitter (link) and in subsequent interviews.

Here is another take on the issue: https://www.npr.org/2021/06/15/10067287 ... el-miranda

[Alatar]

Yeah I saw that. Frankly, I agree with Bill Maher and Rita Moreno on this one. When you're attacking the guys who made the first properly Latino musical, who took a huge risk casting unknowns, to complain that there aren't enough African Americans you're simply targeting the wrong people. This is why people react against "woke" culture. But that's a discussion for another thread.


The movie is uplifting and heartwarming and should have been the feel-good vibe of the summer. It's on HBO for those who don't want to go to a Cinema.

[Voronwë the Faithful]

Yes, I figured that would be your reaction which is why I hadn't posted about it previously. I saw Rita Moreno's appearance on Colbert and found it downright embarrassing, and was glad to see that she has subsequently apologized. But as you say, that is probably a topic for a different discussion.

[Dave_LF]

When they went after The Great Comet--ie the show that cast a black woman as a 19th century Russian princess--for being racist I thought "what's next, Hamilton??" Guess I wasn't far off.

[N.E. Brigand]

Poltergeist was on TCM a couple weeks ago. I hadn't seen it for decades and didn't have time to watch much this time. But the very first shot is arresting, and a quick search suggests that there hasn't been much commentary about it. It's an image of U.S. flag as the "Star-Spangled Banner" plays, and it turns out to be the late-night "sign off" that used to happen when television stations concluded their broadcast day. Static follows.

But when you consider that the movie's titular spirits are Native Americans whose graves were built over by a suburban development, that opening image and music surely can't be coincidental. The movie means to say something about the United States as a whole being built on dead Indians.

[RoseMorninStar]

I remember that sign off. I don't think I've ever seen 'Poltergeist' in it's entirety. No, I wouldn't think that would have been a coincidence. Interesting.

[Frelga]

Jungle Cruise. Exactly what I thought but more fun than expected. The Rock teams up with a plucky doctor and her foppish brother to retrieve a thing, and there are cursed pirates conquistadors. Same beats as their other ride movie but because it's 2020s, instead of rape jokes we have gay sex jokes. Which is probably progress.

[Túrin Turambar]

No Time To Die

Mixed feelings. On one hand, it has a lot of runtime for the plot, and in my view, has just too much stuff - too many heroes, too many villains, too many expendable bad guys, too many interchangeable action scenes. On the other, it goes in some very brave and original directions for a Bond film, and Rami Malek's character made for an excellent villain.

[Alatar]

This has got to be a major Oscar contender. Its absolutely gorgeous. I see it being up for Best Director, Best Picture and Best Actress at the very least.

[RoseMorninStar]

That gave me the chill/feels in an electric sort of way. It looks to be beautifully filmed. I think I'd have to watch it with captioning however.

[N.E. Brigand]

There's an Inklings connection in one of the films nominated for Best Picture today.

[Voronwë the Faithful]

Would you care to elaborate?

[N.E. Brigand]

I would. I only realized this the other day, but I haven't seen the film, so I waited until it was at least back in the news before mentioning it here: Nightmare Alley, which might already be of interest in these quarters because it was directed by Guillermo del Toro of Hobbit fame (and features Cate Blanchett), is an adaption of a 1946 novel by Bill Gresham (adapted to film once before in 1947). Gresham was at that time married to Joy Davidman. After they divorced, Davidman married C.S. Lewis.

[Voronwë the Faithful]

Ah. For some reason the question of who Bill Gresham's first wife was a big deal on the MythSoc listserv, as documented in this blog post from David Bratman.

Bill Gresham's first wife

[Sunsilver]

I've been checking out the Silver Screen channel, and setting some of the movies there to record. It's been rather disappointing - many of them don't hold up at all well.

One notable exception was The Hunchback of Notre Dame, starring Charles Laughton as the Hunchback. Definitely worth a watch for his wonderful performance!

The romance angle in the film is its weakest feature. Two of the characters fall in love at first sight, but with different people, and the romance is strong enough that one of them gets jealous and kills the other. I suppose this would have worked better if they had allowed the romance to develop more. Ugh.

Also just finished watching Cast A Giant Shadow, starring Kirk Douglas. I was interested in this because it's about the birth of Israel, and I know Douglas was Jewish. Also, he was a very handsome man - a real heart-throb in his prime, and certainly a decent actor.

I don't know if Douglas's character was based on a real person, but of course, Hollywood HAS to make the American the hero of the whole story, the man that saves the infant country from annihilation. And, of course, there also HAS to be a romance, between Douglas and a Jewish girl. Actually, it's a love triangle, because Douglas is married to an American woman (played by Angie Dickinson). The relationship is unhappy, because Kirk's character is always off seeking an adrenaline thrill fighting wars. This being the 1960's Douglas remains faithful to his wife, and the romance with Magda doesn't go beyond some passionate kissing.

Edit: Did some homework: Mickey Marcus was a real person, and what he did for Israel in the film sticks fairly closely to the facts. The romance with Magda is a Hollywood fabrication.

[RoseMorninStar]

Recently 'Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind' came up on a list of movies to watch. I had seen it shortly after it initially came out and didn't care for it but I decided to give it another go. I was more impressed this time. I'm not a fan of Jim Carrey, but he really did a wonderful job as a serious actor in this role and I found the plot thought provoking. If we could mess with our memories, should we? It also leans heavily on fate.

[Túrin Turambar]

Death on the Nile, in a nearly-empty theatre.

It was…OK? Agatha Christie purists will have a conniption, but I’m not an Agatha Christie purist, and the story is pretty far-fetched and a little thin to begin with (although it’s one of her most ingenious solutions). Still, it looked a bit like a juggler struggling to keep its historical setting, modern sensibilities and aesthetic, comedic tone, frequent murders, and source material all up in the air at once.

It probably doesn’t help that it’s been well-served by adaptations before. The 1978 film had an all-star cast, including the (admittedly miscast) Peter Ustinov as Poirot, and is a strong product on its own. And then there’s the modern Poirot adaptation starring the peerless David Suchet, and every subsequent actor playing the Belgian detective will struggle to reach the bar he set.

It tried to get out of the shadows of its predecessors with pretty visuals, a lavish aesthetic that only a big Hollywood budget can buy, exciting action, heavy-handed allusions to the theme of love, implied sex, singing, and dancing. It reminds me of Baz Luhrmann’s Great Gatsby in a sense. It sometimes succeeds, and it’s a very pretty film to look at. But I found it a bit hollow, too. It feels like it’s set nowhere in particular featuring characters who aren’t real people.

Curiously, I could have written most of this review without even seeing the film.

[Snowdog]

The last movie I saw in a theater was Dune.