mitchmcc's Reviews

Aguirre, the Wrath of God (1972)

4/10

Aguirre was insane.. so are '10' ratings

20 December 2020

Look, I try to give all European films a break... I know they are not the same as Hollywood's. If someone wants to point out the amazing story of the search for El Dorado, or even the technical problems filming in the jungle, that is fine. But there is really nothing else about this film to recommend it. Even Aguirre's insanity is mostly just his crazed look.

And it is amusing that so many people in the Amazonian jungle, and later floating on a raft for weeks, could have such beautiful hair and clothes.

Again, I am only responding to people who think this is one of the best films of all time (presumably if you rate it a 9 or a 10 you think that).

I really only watched it because I am learning German. If you are not, I advise you to pass on this.

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The Door (2009)

8/10

Nicht schlect, aber....

19 December 2020

Warning: Spoilers

I watched this because I am studying German. Most of the German was above me, but it was still an interesting movie, in the "The Sixth Sense" style.

SPOILER ALERT

Maybe it's because I am a true crime buff, but when you have so many bodies of the "old" people that have been killed by their doppelganger from the future, at some point, people would notice. Like a whole city park full of graves!

Still, I would recommend this. Mads Mikkleson is pretty good.

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Joker (I) (2019)

6/10

Okay

7 November 2020

It's not really fair to blame the movie itself for all of the over-hype. The best thing about this movie is the performance by Joaquin Phoenix. He plays a disturbed individual very well. And as others have noted, the cinematography is also very good.

It is not believable, however, that Arthur would have been allowed on a network TV show. His "act" is just awkward and cringe-worthy, just as he is.

I guess I am glad I saw it, but unless you are into the Batman genre, there is no compelling reason to watch it.

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Aristocrats (1999)

6/10

Confusing

4 November 2020

As another reviewer noted, there are so many children that it is very difficult to keep up with who is who, and this problem increases as the series moves on... Also, although every series that purports to show time passing has to deal with making the actors age, in this one, the oldest daughter looks exactly the same after about 20 years!

The costumes and settings are certainly BBC-worthy, although as a Yank I could not tell if they are accurate or not.

The plots are also confusing, but that is party because the English history of that era was pretty complicated, with the factions, and uprisings, etc.

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Blow the Man Down (2019)

5/10

Almost succeeds

21 October 2020

Warning: Spoilers

I liked many things about this movie, especially the New England (Maine?) setting. But the story has a few holes in it that made it difficult for me to really like it a lot.

SPOILER ALERT

1. The guy she kills is never really noticed to be missing, and only even mentioned about one time, but with no follow up. How can you have a murder mystery when no one notices that the guy is dead?

2. Even in a rural place, nowadays, the local police can call in the State Police or other state crime labs. There is almost no way to clean up a crime scene so that forensic evidence cannot be found.

3. No mention is made of the Madam being killed.. again, the movie just ends and we are supposed (I think) think that the girls get away with their murder and the hookers will too. Pretty far-fetched.

I am not saying that many people will not like this, but as a true-crime genre fan, I thought it was kind of weak.

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Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (2008)

1/10

Horrible!

23 November 2019

I also wanted to like this film, especially when I saw the older set and music. But it just does not work, unless your idea of sophisticated comedy is a haggard Frances McDormand dropping a plate of food on some swell's shoe.

I also wanted to like it after seeing the cute Amy Adams in Julie and Julia. But in this she is simply playing a ditzy dame and other than still being lovely to look at in her "daywear", there is nothing about her performance that is good.

I recommend not wasting your time on this one.

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Sicario (2015)

1/10

Awful film

27 September 2018

Warning: Spoilers

The best spin I could put on this movie is that it did not really know what it wanted to be. I suspect that the writer(s) wanted to make some PC point about the CIA operating on U.S. soil. Of course, they had to put a woman and a black guy as the leads for this story. Both are wooden and uninspired, especially Blunt, who mostly just looks like she is going to cry because the boys won't let her play. Now *that's* a good role model for your young daughters!

The other part of the movie is simply a revenge flick, and not all that good either.

It is hard to quarrel with other reviewers who point out the vast disconnect between the critical acclaim and the actual product. I would advise you not to waste 2 hours of your life with this film.

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Nightcrawler (2014)

4/10

bottom line, does not work

7 February 2018

Warning: Spoilers

Warning: possible spoilers

First, I really like this plot, and really wanted to like this movie. But it contains so many things that are simply not believable, it ultimately fails.

Jake Gyllenhaal does a good job portraying a creepy/weird guy who decides to become a video news reporter. But people like him make other people want to run away, not grant them full access to whatever they want!

After getting some closeup images of a few accidents, which he is able to sell to a local news station that is desperate for ratings, he begins to think that he is Edward R. Murrow and starts making demands. The problem I have with this is that in greater LA, the idea that for any one incident he might not be as much as an hour away, means that *no one* could guarantee that they would be able to get these videos regularly. It would not matter what your journalism skills might be. Yet the movie shows him essentially holding up the news station as if he could guarantee these types of results.

Next, every time he arrives at a crash or fire, there are no other cars backed up. He drives right up to the actual scene! Next, although a few police tell him to get back, in the real world, he would never be able to do what he does in the movie!

Next, when he goes in to the scene of the supposed home invasion, which he heard about on the police scanner, and spends 5 minutes there before the police get there is not believable. Once the police find out, it is not believable that he would not be put under interrogation for 12 hours... instead he just makes some glib remarks and walks out. Any true police show like "The First 48" will show you how wrong this is.

Finally, the idea that the police know he set up the final scene where the policeman is shot, and that he is just able to go on about his life as a news moguls is ridiculous.

Maybe it is because I am a true crime buff that this made me so crazy, but if you watch this, you will see what I mean. I would not recommend it.

Finally,

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Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (2015–2019)

5/10

a mixed bag

11 March 2017

I have never been as mixed up about a title as I was with this one. On the plus side of the ledger, Rachel Bloom has true star quality. You cannot take your eyes off of her, and she has great hooters. The other cast members are also extremely talented. But the premise is, even giving it slack for its inventiveness, "crazy". Nothing about Josh made it seem like he would be the object of such non-stop stalking, other than the fact that he was her teenage summer romance at camp.

But the thing I found most objectionable was that in every single situation, the so-called comedy went so far over the edge to pain that it was: not funny.

Listen to what I am saying. I feel like they took a plot and songs that could have been edgy and *cute*, and made it painful to watch.

I am pretty sure I would not be the only one who feels this way, so I am just forewarning anyone else.

Because of this, although we finished watching all of Season 1, we are not going to continue. Life is too short, and it is really too bad, because I wanted to like this.

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Five Easy Pieces (1970)

2/10

Truly awful

22 December 2016

Full disclosure: I am a big fan of the Hollywood golden era (30s and 40s), so I did not expect to like this, but given its relatively high acclaim, I finally got around to it.

Even given due excuse for being made in the 1970s, this is an awful film, with literally nothing redeeming about it.

It would have been understandable if the theme were about how the girlfriend did not fit in with the upper-crust family, or else how the privileged son went his own way, but this movie is just about nihilism.

Not even a glimpse of Sally Struther's breasts make it worthwhile. There, did I go too far?

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Bicycle Thieves (1948)

3/10

A moral failure

18 April 2014

Warning: Spoilers

Utterly predictable.

One "gets" what is going to happen right away, and although you do want to root for the guy, too much of the movie is his running around to not much effect, such as the long scene in the church looking for the old guy. Why not simply go back to the plaza where he thought he had originally seen the thief?

Once it became clear that he would not be able to recover his bicycle, he should have moved on. According to his own calculations, having the delivery job should have given him sufficient funds to "rent" another bicycle until he could buy another one. At least make an effort that does not involve stealing someone else's bicycle.

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The Searchers (1956)

3/10

Don't bother

9 April 2014

If you like classic Hollywood B&W films from the 30's and early 40's, skip this one. I know most people think that John Ford and John Wayne are the greatest, but watching this movie feels like watching a television program.

The only reason I watched it was after reading the book "The Empire of the Summer Moon", about the capture of Cynthia Ann Parker by the Commanches, and her son Quanah. The book is excellent, and it will also open your eyes to the grim reality of life on the plains. Cynthia Ann, like many other captives of the Indians, did not re-integrate back into white culture successfully.

To sum up, just as a movie, this is not worth watching.

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The Spanish Prisoner (1997)

5/10

ultimately does not work

5 November 2013

WARNING: may contain spoilers!

I wanted to like this movie, and it had potential. I have no problem with a complicated plot, as long as it all hangs together and is believable. But this movie has too many unbelievable points, e.g., the Joe Ross character would never have brought the secret to the meeting and agreed to give it to the Jimmy Dell character. He had previously shown that he was both aware and serious about keeping it secret. And despite his beef with his company about getting his compensation in writing (deservedly), it never shows him being willing or interested in betraying the secret, only that he was exploring talking to a lawyer about getting his share of the money.

And like most plots, when too many people are involved in a conspiracy, it starts to get ridiculous. In this movie, there must have been a dozen at least!

One final point. When Jimmy Dell gave the guy the book and asked him to take it personally to his sister, what did he think would happen when he found out, as he later does, that it was an old woman? Wouldn't that have completely ruined their chances to get at him?

Since most of the reviews are glowing, I wanted to put out another viewpoint.

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The Hunger Games (2012)

3/10

a mess

6 November 2012

I wanted to like this movie, after having read about it being about resistance to a tyrannical government. After watching it, I can only assume this is one of those movies where if you have not read the book, it will not make sense.

Two examples.

1. The relationship between Katniss and the first boy we see, and her more intense relationship with her fellow tribute. Clearly both are in love with her, but there is no real resolution of what her feelings for them are. Not good movie-making.

2. There is, of course, one scene which appears to show some sort of uprising in her district, but it is very vague how it starts (because of the hand sign?) and there is no follow up or discussion of what it means and whether it is successful. In fact, not much is said at all about the exact nature of the government and whether people are chafing under it.

A final pet peeve. The idea that small girls like Rue and Katniss's sister would be pitted against some of the bloodthirsty tributes is simply ridiculous. And even the idea that Katniss could compete against them (without firearms) is a stupid Hollywood (liberal) wet-dream.

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Trouble in Paradise (1932)

10/10

possibly the best movie ever made in the Golden Era

9 March 2012

I am sorry if this sounds lame, but it is hard to describe exactly why this movie is so good. Of course, if you are familiar with Ernst Lubitsch it will come as no surprise, but as usual, Lubitsch manages to create a perfect blend of comedy and pathos, along with a health dose of the famous "Lubitsch touch" (sexual innuendo).

Miriam Hopkins is delightful, Herbert Marshall is his typical suave self, and Kay Francis is lovely and enchanting.

You will remember this movie, and keep repeating the lines, such as "and waiter, I don't want to see you at all".

Please watch this movie!

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Shooter (I) (2007)

3/10

9 March 2012

This is a bad movie. If you are a patriot who loves Bob Lee Swagger, then all you need to know is that contains

1. Danny Glover. 2. The Nick Memphis character wearing a Che Guevara t-shirt. 3. The standard leftist drivel about big oil controlling everything.

It's not that Mark Wahlberg is horrible as Swagger, but the acting is not that good, and the characters mumble so that it is difficult to understand what they are saying.

Stick to the books. In fact, I will probably go back and re-read Point of Impact, but I strongly recommend skipping this movie.

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Merrily We Live (1938)

5/10

remade in Spanish

17 February 2007

This movie was remade in Spanish in 1955 as "Escuela de Vagabundos", starring Pedro Infante as the bum.

"Escuela" is an exact copy of this one, down to some of the scenery! For example, the opening scene where Brian Ahern's car sputters up the hill, and then rolls back over the cliff while he gets water for it.

Although "Escuela" does not have subtitles (I am learning Spanish so I needed that), it is still enjoyable to watch, and I liked Pedro Infante's bum better than Brian Ahern's.

Just thought fans of screwball comedy might like to know, and to check this out if they can find it. You can buy the DVD many places.

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Escuela de vagabundos (1955)

5/10

interesting factoid

17 February 2007

I liked this movie, because I am learning Spanish, and because I like Pedro Infante as a singer.

Last night, we watched a movie on cable called "Merrily We Live", which was made in 1938. This movie, which starred Constance Bennett and Brian Aherne as the daughter and the bum, respectively, is an exact copy of that one, down to some of the scenery! For example, the opening scene where Pedro's car sputters up the hill, and then rolls back over the cliff while he gets water for it.

Just thought fans of "Escuela" might like to know, and to check this out if it comes back on television.

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Love Me Tonight (1932)

10/10

More than lives up to its reputation!

23 August 2006

In many years of reading about movies from Hollywood's "Golden Age", I had often read that this was one of the best. I had a hard time believing it could be as good as some of the better-known films from the 30's and 40's, when this one was not as widely known or even available.

When I was finally able to see it, I realized that the plaudits were more than deserved. Although I was never a huge Maurice Chevalier fan, he is perfect for this role. Jeanette MacDonald, too, is funny and lovely (especially in her camisole, thanks to the pre-production code date!). Finally, the music of Richard Rodgers ("Isn't It Romantic") adds the final touch of excellence to what is overall one of the great films of all time.

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All That Heaven Allows (1955)

3/10

weird!

13 July 2006

This was my first Rock Hudson movie, and all I can say is, he is weird looking. His acting is very wooden and artificial, and it looks like he has false teeth.

As for the plot, it is more Hollywood holier-than-thou self-righteousness. Clearly, all of the neighbors are ugly people, but Kirby is presented as a saint because he inherited his father's landscaping business and now gets to grow trees and read Thoreau.

Jane Wyman is lovely, but her children are monsters. The only amusing thing was when her know-it-all daughter the psychology student weepingly admits that (paraphrase) "I don't understand human nature at all"!

Skip this one except for academic interest.

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Shane (1953)

5/10

Flat

25 April 2006

I re-watched this movie last night after about 10 years since the first time, and it has not improved.

In the interest of full disclosure, I am not an Alan Ladd fan. Despite the ability of Hollywood to make one look beyond the superficial, Alan Ladd does not work for me as a "tough guy".

I *am* a Jean Arthur fan, especially in "You Can't Take It With You" and "Mr. Deeds Goes To Town".

So I wanted to try and give Shane another chance. I still do not like it.

The word my wife used to describe it is pretty good: flat. None of the characters seemed to us to have any real emotion, even when they *said* the right words (about not giving up their land, etc.).

The plot is your standard, been done hundreds of times, Western about homesteaders being driven off their land by bad guys. If it is well done (see Pale Rider) I don't mind this, but the overall acting and script here does not measure up.

I would skip this altogether, but one probably should watch it if you are interested in classic movies (this is the only reason I give it even a five).

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Suspicion (1941)

6/10

Doesn't live up to potential

24 April 2006

Suspicion has many good things about it. First, Cary Grant plays Johnny Aylesgarth with an appropriate undercurrent of menace/hostility (think of how he talks to Katherine Hepburn in The Philadelphia Story). Second, Joan Fontaine does an excellent job of playing the somewhat school-marmish girl who is swept away by Johnny, at least initially. Also, Nigel Bruce plays a great part as Johnny's school-buddy "Beaky".

The problems I have with this movie are as follows:

1. Johnny is supposed to be a "loveable rogue". He gets the rogue part right, but the "loveable" part is not believable. Even given the mores of an earlier era, it seems hard to believe that Lina would have kept taking more of Johnny's lies.

2. The ending is unbelievable. Even if Johnny turns out *not* to be a killer, (the "suspicion" is that he is), the idea of him turning his life around and them living happily ever after is stupid. Johnny has proved himself to be a liar and thief over and over again. I heard that Hitchcock wanted a different ending, but was overruled by the studio. Too bad, as I would have trusted Hitchcock's instincts here.

Everone should watch this film for their "classic" collection, but overall, it is not as good as other Hitchcock offerings, such as Rebecca.

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The Talk of the Town (1942)

3/10

Only so-so

17 April 2006

Although I am a huge Cary Grant fan, and I love Jean Arthur, this film leaves a lot to be desired. As a previous reviewer said, something is just not right with it, and it doesn't really click.

Perhaps it is because it cannot make up its mind whether it wants to be a comedy, screwball comedy (it does have some elements of this), or a drama with a serious message.

If I had to guess, I would bet that the script was written by a "progressive", and that "social justice" was the real goal here.

Cary Grant doesn't come off right as the labor agitator who is jailed for committing arson and murder, and Ronald Colman does not (IMO) do very well with comedy. The only saving grace is Jean Arthur, who performs with her usual grace and beauty.

I would skip this one, unless you just want to see it for the record.

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Boys Town (1938)

2/10

Predictable - skip it

5 December 2005

Even trying mightily to not apply modern sensibilities to this movie, it comes off as mighty schmaltzy and utterly predictable.

Oh, and did I mention unbelievable? Father Flanagan manages 500 boys with hardly any other adults in sight!

He also excuses all manner of disorderly conduct without so much mentioning "now you are going to repay the shopkeeper for the $80 pane of glass you broke". There may be "no bad boys", but there are no free windows!

In a better movie, all of these objections (some of which are standard Hollywoodism's from this era) can be forgiven. This one is just not good enough to rise above them.

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Tom, Dick and Harry (1941)

1/10

Don't bother

11 July 2005

Just in case you think that Hollywood never made horrible movies during the Golden Age, this one comes along to set the record straight.

Although I love Ginger Rogers with Fred Astaire, she clearly thought of herself as a more versatile actress. While I have not seen her in her dramatic role for Kitty Foyle, as a comedienne (here, and in Monkey Business), she is horrible acting like a giggling teenager.

She plays a telephone operator who is being pursued for marriage by three different guys. Tom is a stable, hardworking guy, but she doesn't really love him. Harry is a "what me worry" type whose kiss does cause her to hear bells! Finally, Dick is the proverbial movie millionaire.

Each guy gets his own "fantasy sequence" when Ginger tries to imagine what life would be like with them.

Overall, this is just a stupid movie. Lots of blame accrues to the script, which is extremely lame.

Don't blame me if you rent this one anyway!

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