Having not seen the third installment yet, I started rewatching the TOY STORY flicks in the first part of the year. Didn’t think it would take me until Christmas to see the third one, but sometimes that is how these things go. Hey, at least I got them all in in 2011! Some SPOILERS below.
I’m really not a fan of filmed musicals. I don’t have any logic to apply here, since I don’t mind musical animated movies and I’m alright with musical theater. But for whatever reason, I tend to steer clear of musicals on film altogether. But I’ve always heard that Albert Finney is considered by some to be the quintessential Scrooge (despite the fact that he was only 34 when this came out), and I hadn’t yet watched a version of Dickens’ Christmas Carol yet this holiday season. So I figured, what the heck, let’s give it a shot! (As a side note, this is my 300th movie ranked! Woohoo!)
Something about Anthony Hopkins defies logic. It always seems like his acting is better than the movies he is in. I suppose that has happened to Pacino, De Niro, Hoffman, and much of that generation. Those who came to be actors in the 60s and 70s have very few quality scripts, it seems, come across their desk. FRACTURE is one I have seen before, but not since it’s release. LIGHT SPOILERS AFTER THE JUMP
I’d heard a lot of good things about this film, and was very curious to see it. I seem to be on a bit of a thriller and suspense kick lately, so this seemed like a logical choice to bump from the list. Plus, I’m always down for Affleck returning to Boston.
I think Tony Scott might be the most underrated director of his generation. While his brother Ridley gets far more credit, Tony has been turning out great flicks like TRUE ROMANCE, MAN ON FIRE, and DOMINO for decades. Heck, even his pure entertainment fare like TOP GUN and BEVERLY HILLS COP II are solid. SPY GAME certainly is very good, even if it doesn’t get mentioned as a big movie in the careers of either Robert Redford or Brad Pitt.
This is the movie which put Shia LaBeouf on the map for me. I only knew him as some Disney kid, and I really didn’t have a ton of desire to see this. That, combined with the fact that it was an obvious REAR WINDOW rip off, and I was definitely ready to hate DISTURBIA when I first saw it years ago. Instead, I was surprised to find a well-spun and taught little thriller. I decided to give it a go once more to see if it was merely the beneficiary of low expectations, or perhaps, to see if it really is worthwhile.
This movie is one that I fully intended to see when it came out in theaters. Seven years later, I finally got to it. I’m a big Wes Anderson fan, so I am very glad to have knocked this comedy off of my list.
Continue reading ‘johnlink ranks THE LIFE AQUATIC WITH STEVE ZISSOU (2004)’
I haven’t watched a good thriller in awhile, but fortunately this Spike Lee joint blipped back on my radar recently. I’d seen this several years ago upon its release to DVD. I remember thinking fondly of it. Regardless, I was definitely in the mood for some smooth talking Denzel…
I don’t think I’ve seen this movie (which many of my generation consider a classic) since its DVD release. I did see it in theaters, bought it right away (back then, I bought way more than I needed), watched it once more and never revisited it. Though it’s never been in any of my top comedy lists, it is certainly a flick I consider very funny.
Not quite ready for bed last night, I happened across a print of this film online. This is a movie which Criterion found worthy of a release, so I figured a short 65 minute jaunt through the jungle couldn’t be all bad. THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME is based on the famous short story by Richard Connell, and concerns a man living on a remote island who hunts shipwreck survivors for sport.
Continue reading ‘johnlink ranks THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME (1932)’
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