Films You Have Watched

[Yakumo]

Can't miss Cousin Eddie's knackered RV in the background!

r. "Can't see the line, can you Russ?" No, can't even see her at all!

Ah, the RV was the hint but maybe too much of a hint 😅
I loved the line at the lingerie counter where the woman say "can I get something out for you?". The reaction on Clark is the best. Still made me laugh when seeing it last nigh.

[prinnysquad]

Haven’t watched Christmas Vacation for a few years. I feel like I have to reset for a while after watching seasonal stuff. I watched Home Alone this year for the first time in about 4 years and enjoyed it far more.

[Hirst]

I loved the line at the lingerie counter where the woman say "can I get something out for you?". The reaction on Clark is the best. Still made me laugh when seeing it last nigh.

The bit where he’s talking to his boss and some senior executives in his office and they start filing past in rank order with him going “Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas” until it gets to the lower ranks and he starts muttering insults at them instead. Never fails to crack me up.

[Yakumo]

The bit where he’s talking to his boss and some senior executives in his office and they start filing past in rank order with him going “Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas” until it gets to the lower ranks and he starts muttering insults at them instead. Never fails to crack me up.

Indeed. Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas, kiss my ass, kiss my ass, kiss his ass, happy honaka 😁
Classic!

[Finsbury Girl]

Hypnotic - I had no idea this was from Robert Rodriguez and to be honest apart from a few little things here and there it's not a typical RR film (though admittedly his recent output has been atypical and variable to say the least). Anyway to the film, Affleck tries hard, there really were some very interesting ideas (a lot shamefacedly lifted) with some neat twists and turns. Was kind of like a try hard Nolan film without the intelligence or especially, budget. Overall whilst I enjoyed it, it's not a great movie by any stretch and the lack of budget is obvious.

Mission Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One - watched it on the plane and yep it does what it says on the tin. Whilst not up to the stratospheric heights of #2 , it is a very well made action bonanza, Tom and team have delivered once again. The female baddie hench-er woman was a bit pointless and there is definitely not enough of the stunning Rebecca Fergusson other than that, WOW. Loved the little nod to the first movie with the train sequence.

[Atticus]

I saw Saltburn. not suitable for Christmas viewing with the family

Watched Saltburn on Chrisatmas Eve, with the family Yes, a few awkward moments but a super enjoyable film. Didn't know anything about it going in and

->Open Spoiler<-

it totally pulled the rug on me. And I love it when a film back-tracks and shows you what was really happenbing in the set-up

. Felt like a British Bret Easton Ellis joint.

Speaking of uncomfortable, I watched Speak No Evil on our shiny new Shudder sub. Mike Muncer on the Evolution of Horror podcast said this film destroyed him and once watched you know where he's coming from. It's about two families who meet on holiday and one invites the other to their home for a stay. It very much plays on on what is politely tollerated and to what degree (like The Invitation). If you can take the anxiety it's an absolute belter.

Also watched Police Story II ... don't think I've ever seen this one before. Not quite as charming as the first but non-stop entertainment all the way. The disc had a full ep of The Invcredibly Strange Film Show with Jonathan Ross in the bonus features where he goes to HK to meet Jackie on the set of Miracles. Top stuff.

[Lebowski]

Went to see the Boy and the Heron over the Crimbo break, which had a limited release at various cinemas across the UK (Everyman cinemas are showing it, I went to the one in Leeds). It's great to see studio Ghibli back at the cinema, the score and animation are on another level, so to see it on the big screen was a real treat.

The story follows a young boy in World War 2 who has to leave Tokyo after a bomb destroys the local hospital and kills his mother, on arriving at his aunt's residence in the countryside strange events start to occur surrounding a Grey Heron and a mysterious tower in the grounds.

It's classic studio Ghibli exploring themes of life and death and is a real step back towards films like Spirited Away and Howls moving castle as it contains lots of fantasy elements, It's great to see them exploring these sorts of themes again and as much as I enjoy films like Up on poppy hill and When Marnie was there I have to admit that I much prefer this type of film.

It's not super straight forward, it left me with lots of questions on leaving the cinema and it's good that it leaves things open to interpretation, as theirs nothing worse than being spoon fed a story, I can't wait to see it again.


​

[Neon Ignition]

Die Hard
Which started a thing over the holidays that we're only just wrapping up now

Die Hard 2: Die Harder
Still fun

Die Hard with a Vengeance
Also still fun if a little overlong

Live Free or Die Hard
Still fun

Lethal Weapon
Solid though some humour has aged

Lethal Weapon 2
Also solid and even more awkward in places

Lethal Weapon 3
Let down a little by a weak villain

Lethal Weapon 4
Great fun still though the awkwardly dated humor continues

Batteries Not Included
Held the kids attention despite not being very eventful

Home Alone
As is customary

Muppets Christmas Carol
The GOAT version

[Solar]

Watched Escape From Pretoria last night.
A true story about Tim Jenkin's prison break in the late 70s during the apartheid of South Africa, the acting was spot on by all actors, a few on the edge of your seat moments, and it didn't linger on the current politics for a filler which would have been too easy for a movie like this. They kept it all about the prison break.
Overall, it was a bloody good watch.

[Atticus]

Ghost Dog: The way of the Samurai. Enjoyable rewatch. A strange hitman/samurai lore/gangster/hip-hop mashup that works. Really unique vibe, killer soundtrack from RZA and Forest Whitaker is class.

[Neon Ignition]

Haunting of the Queen Mary
Interesting in terms of how it roots itself in the real ships history but the film lacks scares and after a promising start falls apart halfway through

[Neon Ignition]

Santa Claus: The Movie
Not perfect but still has much charm, Lithgow and the best ever movie Santa going for it

[Neon Ignition]

Cinema 2023
My wrap up for last years cinema trips is now complete. During the 2015-2019 pre-pandemic but having kids era I was averaging 15-18 films per year on the big screen.

During 2020 when the pandemic landed I managed just 4. two before the outbreak and two whilst it was underway.

When things lifted part way through 2021 I went back up to 17.
2022 was the first clear year post-pandemic and the total was a major uplift to 39


The Total for 2023 is: 38

Having a pass definitely makes a big difference, I'm still a long way from breaking my own record which I think is from my Uni years at 72. I don't expect 2024 to increase things as the first three months are quiet and there's too much strikes knock on this year. First visit might not be till Feb.

Films Seen at the Cinema in 2023:

-M3GAN
-Plane
-Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
-The Whale
-Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania
-Cocaine Bear
-Shazam! Fury of the Gods
-Scream 6
-John Wick: Chapter Four
-Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves
-Super Mario Bros. Movie
-Superman: The Movie
-Evil Dead Rise
-Aliens
-Guaridans of the Galaxy Vol.3
-Fast X
-Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
-The Flash
-Transformers: Rise of the Beasts
-Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
-Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning - Part One
-Insidious: The Red Door
-Barbie
-Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem
-The Meg 2: The Trench
-Haunted Mansion
-Blue Beetle
-The Nun II
-A Haunting in Venice
-Batman
-The Expendables 4
-Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie
-The Exorcist: Believer
-Saw X
-The Marvels
-Wonka
-Wish
-Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom

I only saw one movie more than once during the year which was two viewings of Indiana Jones.
Total No. Of Individual Films Seen at the Cinema Ever - 785

Should finally crack the 800 marker in 2024 with around 30 known films having an eye on them for potential viewings.

[prinnysquad]

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny

It was decent. Parts of it felt like a cringeworthy drag, but other parts were well-paced and at least tried to recapture the atmosphere of the original three. It was quite a sad watch in a way, because everyone looks so old. I expected something a bit meatier and tighter from the director, but on the whole, it was quite a pleasant way to spend a couple of hours.

[Dogg Thang]

I watched a whole bunch of movies over the holidays... but I've totally forgotten most of them. Past Lives was a standout. A beautiful, sweet small film about childhood sweethearts reuniting years later. It's lovely.

I saw Suzume and I enjoyed it but nowhere near as much as Your Name or Weathering With You. I found the story a bit more typical and the chair gag was very Ghibli. I was also a little distracted by the sheer amount of 3D, something I felt was better integrated in the previous movies.

Can't remember what else I watched except for rewatching Alien and Aliens back to back, which I enjoyed immensely. Both wonderful movies although, with each rewatch, Alien goes up in my estimation while Aliens drops a little.