What Films Have You Seen Recently?

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Shame (2011)

Michael Fassbender plays Brandon, a New York executive with a compulsive addiction to sex. When his lounge singer sister, Sissy, (Carey Mulligan) pretty much moves into Brandon's apartment unannounced, his life begins to get extremely complicated and he must confront his addiction head on before it destroys his life.

Steve McQueen's film is an unflinching look at sex addiction, the way it interferes in Brandon's daily life compares it to a constant need for drugs. Fassbender is excellent here. It's not the sort of role you can imagine many established name actors to want to take on as Brandon finds himself in many compromising situations and naked in every aspect, such as Sissy finding him masturbating in the bathroom and his regular daliances with webcam porn. His need also gets in the way of genuine intimacy as he dates a co-worker but is unable to achieve an erection yet minutes after she leaves he's able to aggressively f*ck a hooker in the same hotel room.

It's a film that you can't really take your eyes off but it's also extremely ambiguous in it's resolution, if indeed there is one, following Sissy's attempted suicide in Brandon's bathroom - Again as with Fassbender, this is a brave performance from Carey Mulligan.

McQueen's direction is fluid and his settings well staged. It's an attractive film to look at cinematography wise but for all it's subject matter and nudity it's not the slightest bit erotic and come the final scene which echoes the first scene, it's difficult to say exactly what McQueen achieves with Shame. If anything other than sex addiction is bad.

[Nosferatu@Cult Labs]

Killers of the Flower Moon

When oil is discovered in 1920s Oklahoma under Osage Nation land, the Osage people are murdered one by one—until the FBI steps in to unravel the mystery.

Martin Scorsese's latest film has become widely discussed because of its lengthy running time rather than the subject matter, the performances, and the quality of the filmmaking.

This is a shame because it is one of the great man's finest films; a beautifully constructed and powerful epic about a disgraceful and repugnant episode in the United States' recent history.

The film focuses on a World War I veteran, Ernest Burkhart (Leonardo DiCaprio), who has returned from Europe in need of employment. His uncle, William 'King' Hale (Robert De Niro), is heavily involved with the Osage Nation and is seen by many of them as respectful, friendly, and helpful – he speaks their language fluently and is keen to follow their customs.

This avuncular appearance masks a rapacious and cruel nature, a man who wants to take every cent possible from the Osage people by fair means or foul. As part of this, he suggests that his nephew become a chauffeur to Molly Kyle (Lily Gladstone), a single woman who will likely inherit a fortune from the Nation's oil wealth – the long-term plan is to marry her and become a court-appointed guardian of her finances, at which point she will be deemed incompetent and ruined.

I'm not how he does it but DiCaprio has changed his face in a similar way to Billy Bob Thornton in Sling Blade, almost speaking with a permanent grimace that may be a result of the internal injuries he suffered in Europe, and manages to convey both tenderness and ruthlessness. He is also tender and loving around Molly but willing to go along with Hale's plan to murder Molly's first husband for his life insurance – Ernest is a complicated and conflicted man, a willing puppet of his powerful uncle.

The performances DiCaprio, De Niro, and Lily Gladstone are all superb – Gladstone is very impressive – and the fine ensemble cast features Jesse Plemons, John Lithgow, Brendan Fraser, and an admirable range of Native American actors.

It's a film I'm glad I saw at the cinema because it is a long film that demands your attention, an important commentary on America's relationship with its indigenous people, so watching it without any distractions was important.

Additionally, I saw it on one of the bigger screens so was able to appreciate Rodrigo Prieto's cinematography in a way that wouldn't be as impressive on my 55" TV at home. Unsurprisingly, Thelma Schoonmaker edited the film and did so in a way that made the film feel weighty and important, but never too long or confused. Considering what was on the screen, I have no idea how much was left out to get it down to 'only' 206 minutes!

Finally, Robbie Robertson's score should be singled out for praise because it is a wonderful backdrop to the film, a blues-inflected and beautifully composed piece of music by someone with Cayuga and Mohawk ancestry. It is unfortunate that this 11th collaboration with Scorsese was his last feature film and Robertson died just before the film was theatrically released, so it's fitting that it is dedicated to him.

I would like to watch this again before it disappears from cinemas and will try to avoid one with an interval. It was constructed and edited as one uninterrupted piece, paced accordingly, and I don't think it should be broken up with a 15 minute break so people can go to the toilet or buy a drink – inserting an interval after it was finished artificially changes the film that Scorsese and Schoonmaker directed and edited, respectively, and just feels wrong.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Nosferatu@Cult Labs

Killers of the Flower Moon



I would like to watch this again before it disappears from cinemas and will try to avoid one with an interval. It was constructed and edited as one uninterrupted piece, paced accordingly, and I don't think it should be broken up with a 15 minute break so people can go to the toilet or buy a drink – inserting an interval after it was finished artificially changes the film that Scorsese and Schoonmaker directed and edited, respectively, and just feels wrong.

It certainly doesn't sound like a 'popcorn' film which is what intervals were basically for - Buying more popcorn.

Enjoyed the write up, Nos.

[Nosferatu@Cult Labs]

The Great Escaper

In the summer of 2014, a World War II veteran sneaks out of his care home to attend the 70th anniversary commemoration of the D-Day landings in Normandy.

I thought the trailer for this dramatisation of a true life story looked fun and bittersweet, something to watch knowing it was finished shortly before Glenda Jackson sadly died.

All of this was true when I watched it at the cinema last month – it's a film that is a good deal funnier than I expected with some cracking dialogue, particularly from Rene (Jackson), the wife of Bernie, a World War II veteran who realises he can't go to the 70th anniversary commemoration of the D-Day landings because his application was too late. Spurred on by something Rene says, Bernie decides to go anyway and goes for an early morning walk from his nursing home, a walk that, with public transport, takes him to northern France.

Along the way, he is befriended by another veteran, Arthur, who was an RAF pilot during the war and has his own reasons for going to Normandy.

The Great Escaper could quite easily have been a saccharine Hallmark-type movie, so it's to esteemed screenwriter William Ivory's credit that he brought a good deal of nuance, emotion, humour, and depth to a fairly simple story. He did the same with Made in Dagenham (2010), another splendid British film based on true events and real people.

If this was only about Bernie, it would have been a very simple, though profound, film, but it was one that surprised me because I expected a fairly basic story about an old man who visits France and, through flashbacks, we are shown something about his past. This would have been fine, but the film is elevated because of the Arthur character, someone with current demons linked to historic regrets – his story is probably the most interesting and moving, and the emotional heft leads to some very powerful scenes.

Additionally, the story brings events right up-to-date because there is a young man assisting with the commemorations, someone who served in Afghanistan and has a prosthetic leg due to injuries sustained in a landmine explosion. His interactions with Bernie give the elderly absconder additional depth, and the way he is played by Michael Caine (who retired from acting last month) is perfect.

I don't think it's hyperbole to say that, in her final film, Glenda Jackson delivered one of her finest performances. Rene is a delightful character: mischievous and loving, and whose relationship with Michael Caine's Bernie is completely believable and very moving. Also, the interactions she has with the nursing home workers and medical staff while Bernie is away, particularly Adele (Danielle Vitalis), a young and relatively inexperienced HCA, are using and endearing.

If you didn't see this at the cinema, then you missed out on a first-rate British film and I highly recommend that you catch it as soon as it is available to buy on Blu-ray or, failing that, rent it from Prime Video.

[Nosferatu@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by Demdike@Cult Labs

It certainly doesn't sound like a 'popcorn' film which is what intervals were basically for - Buying more popcorn.

Enjoyed the write up, Nos.

Killers of the Flower Moon isn't the sort of film you can sit and absentmindedly watch while working your way through a big bag of snacks. It has more in common with Silence or The Age of Innocence than Hugo or The Wolf of Wall Street.

If it had been designed as a 'Roadshow' film like the longer version of Quentin Tarantino's The Hateful Eight or Grindhouse, then I'd be much more likely to go to a screening with an interval.

[MrBarlow]

Originally Posted by Demoncrat

The Equalizer 3 (2023, Antoine Fuqua)

McCall is back in this third installment.
Finding himself in need of assistance after his last job, he ends up in a small Italian town.
Just as brutal as the last two, yes it's all total nonsense if you sit back and think about it, but when has that ever stopped me?

I watched this earlier today and enjoyed it, Dakota Fanning teaming with Denzel again was a good call for the film.

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Dead Man Running (2009)

Fair to middling British gangster effort starring Tamer Hassan who ends up owing local gang boss, 50 Cent, a hundred grand by the end of the weekend or hitman Phil Davies will top Hassan's wheelchair bound mother (Brenda Blethyn) if he fails. Luckily Hassan has his brother Danny Dyer on hand to come up with get rich schemes.

A film that's watchable enough with Blethyn in cracking form. Hassan and Dyer are their likable cockney selves but sadly Monet Mazur as Hassan's extremely funny dominatrix girlfriend is underused.

A film that's kinda' forgettable but entertaining enough whilst you watch it which is helpful for repeated viewings.

[MrBarlow]

John Wick. 2014.

Keanu Reeves is John Wick a retired hitman enjoying a peaceful life until his wife dies, then he is attacked and his dog is killed along with his car is stolen and just a little tad upset and goes on a revenge spree. What makes this more enjoyable is the fact we have no idea who John is or what he has done until Russian mobster Michael Nyqvist releases John's past to Alfie Allen and taking out three guys with a pencil so we are given the mindset of a hitman and dedication to achieve his goal. The gun fight/action sequence in the house is brilliantly timed and choreographed along with the fight scenes and shows how a assassin can take a beating.

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[MrBarlow]

John Wick: Chapter 2. 2017.

John is trying to put his life back as a ordinary man but when someone from his past brings him to the fold for a job, Wick has a bounty placed on him. Chad Stahelski returns at the helm following the surprise success of the first John Wick movie, and once again delivers a highly stylish and ultra- violent action movie. This one manages to pull off a really good sequel. Not only does it expand the John Wick universe more, but the stakes feel bigger and the villains seem more threatening. The battle in the underground is staged well and towards the finale with one gun and 7 bullets is intruiging how it can be pulled off then we get some decent shootout scenes.

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[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Heart of Midnight (1988)

Jennifer Jason Leigh stars in this dark thriller about a young woman who inherits a sleazy club from an even sleazier uncle. Despite 'issues' with the local help she attempts a renovation of the building and that's when things get a bit weird.

Almost Lynch like in it's atmosphere, colour palette and cinematography with wild Giallo style motifs thrown in - red apples, lots of them, knifes through water beds, eye holes in the walls and so forth and that's before we get to the huge influence Kubrick's version of The Shining had on the film and the smoky whiff of Noir cinema that permeates throughout.

Jason Leigh is great, she's a class act at those lost and vulnerable roles, whilst Peter Coyote's cop is way too friendly for his own good. As for Frank Stallone's cop? Talk about fecking useless. But these less than normal characters each add to the air of oddness the film exudes.

Although i watched it in my teens on rental i'd no idea what it was about (not sure i do yet) then bought the dvd a few years back via the Kino US release (looks great by the way) and was severely underwhelmed with it all. It certainly didn't come close to it's stupendously sexy poster art (see below). However on what i class as a second viewing it's strengths did hit home, namely those Lynchian atmospherics and the general other worldly vibe the film had as a whole. Whatever it is it's a film you can't avert your gaze from.