Recommend a movie

[Vultural]

The Reeds - 2010 - 5/10

Three girls, three guys, rent a boat to celebrate an engagement and go drinking at an obscure pub somewhere in a reedy marsh.
Sounds like a plan.
Maybe next time they will head to the moors where the RAF practices strafing runs and bombing.
Points given for crafting a professional looking film on a rat's lunch allowance.
Still, even though our crew hands were all in their late 20s, this was another variant on the dead teenager plot.  
Don’t expect originality with this one.

[Vultural]

Aozora Musume -1957 - 6/10
AKA - Blue Sky Maiden // 青空娘

Sweet story of girl, recently graduated from high school, going to live in Tokyo with her father.
She had been living with grandma, since ma had had her out of wedlock and there was that shame factor.
Oh, and dad had been married back when, is still married, and the family is not at all keen about her moving in.
With a big smile and almost boundless cheer, she tries to win them over.
Immaculate compositions, as always with Japan productions, nice period look at Post War Tokyo.
Partially predictable, but with a couple of unguessed plot turns.

[Vultural]

Berlin - Metropolis of Vice - 2005 - 7/10

Free-for-all tour of 1920s Berlin, widely considered one of the most decadent time/place cities ever.
Film takes its cues from Mel Gordon’s “Voluptuous Panic” and is packed with images, most which cannot be shown here.
Much had to do with the defeat of Germany at the end of World War I, the annihilation of so many men, runaway inflation, as well as the sense of devil take the hindmost.
Tourists flocked to Berlin, mostly because their runaway inflation meant that everything - and everyone - was inexpensive.

On parade are cabarets, gay clubs, lesbian clubs, transvestite societies, nudist associations, the sex museum, drugs, alcohol, S&M and prostitutes, legions of prostitutes - male, female, mother & daughter combos, pregnant females, obese types, deformed or paraplegic, sugar lickers, racehorses, grasshoppers, half-beavers, gravelstones, kontroll girls, boot girls, half silks . . .  
Of course, the inevitable backlash arrived with the rise of the National Socialist Party.

[Vultural]

The Woman In Black - 2012 - 5/10

Hammer film starring Daniel Radcliffe, based on the West End shocker that has been playing since ... when ... the Gladstone administration?
Twisted tale set in haunted house where our young clerk must shift several lots of papers.
He gets distracted constantly. Noises overhead, creaking down the hall, movement outside. So he stops working to start chasing. I hate working with people like that.
Every five minutes, the film had a gotcha surprise punctuated with REALLY LOUD music.
Film-makers have opened up the play considerably with brooding exteriors and wonderfully appointed interiors.  Fellow members of the room audience thought the sets too perfect.
Good for some jolts, but an overall disappointment for me.

[Vultural]

How to Be Sherlock Holmes - 2014 - 6/10

Glossy overview of the actors who have played Holmes.
From William Gillette to Mr Cumberbatch.
Of particular interest are what each has added to the canon.
Gillette, for example, switched from a straight pipe to the iconic curved pipe (so audiences could see his face).
He also uttered the phrase - on silent intertitle - “Elementary.”
Rathbone updated Holmes to the 40s, Cumberbatch to the present day.
Jeremy Brett given left-handed praise, with apologists whining how tired he looked at the end (for those unaware, Mr Brett had been fighting cancer for several years, eventually succumbing to a heart attack).
Rathbone quit Holmes, worrying he would become typecast (which occurred).  No mention was uttered of the sheer times he portrayed the detective.  13  major film roles, and a whopping 220 radio episodes!
The narrative also reminded viewers how fortunate they were to have two new actors (Cumberbatch & R Downey) playing the consulting detective.  No mention of the Miller / Liu series.
Purists decry the omission of Vasily Livanov, considered by many to be the finest Holmes.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0079902

[Vultural]

Murder Is My Beat - 1955 - 5/10

My mistake.  I mistook Barbara Payton for Beverly Michaels and grabbed this from my stash.
Pretty bad film from the get-go.  Note police captain in awful black n white checked sportcoat.  Ugh.
Dead man found in fireplace, face and hands burned beyond recognition.
Blame falls on girlfriend - clubgirl - hooker at cheap bar.
Cop traces her to mountain cabin (chance to see lots of snow for no reason).
Atrocious dialogue, like the writer attempted wiseguy Noir and ended up with junior high mimicry.
Acting uniformly bad.  Photography ranges from static to overused stock.  No pace.
There must have been ten minutes of trains roaring past.  Plus, a couple minutes tour inside a ceramics factory!
Blows, man.  Payton’s final film.  From this point on, her story was ugly.

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0668510/bio

[Vultural]

Hysteria - 2011 - 6/10

Victorian costumer and inventor tale.
Some names are synonymous with their inventions.
The Earl Of Sandwich, Sir Thomas Crapper, Hans Geiger, Candido Jacuzzi, ...
Not Mortimer Granville, however, who invented a device for treating female hysteria.
An electrical, vibrating device that relieved tension, and remains a wildly popular gadget to this day.
Not as over-the-top funny as it could have been, featuring secondary stories about suffragette rights, and the plight of the poor.

[Vultural]

5 X 2 - 2004 - 6/10

Inverted love story from François Ozon follows a couple “2“ through “5“ episodes of their relationship.
Story opens at the divorce attorney and a humiliating separation.
Then it flashes back to when the marriage turned sour -
back to the ecstasy of the nuptials -
to the desperate joy when you encounter one who could be “the one.”
The film is more the details, though, rather than the history.
Fate, coldly cruel here, twists each scene - from the beginning, or in this case, from the end.

[Vultural]

Irrational Man - 2015 - 6/10

Psychological mystery from Woody Allen.
Initially, I thought this a rehash of a recent Hugh Grant, The Rewrite, a droll rom com.
Yet, no, this is one of Allen’s darker films.
Joaquin Phoenix plays a philosophy professor who overhears a conversation of moral misdoing.
Next he contemplates the ethics and consequences of random murder.
The story is neither compelling nor arresting.  Most of the parts seem curiously underwritten.
The professor and female student contribute dual voiceovers to further the plot.
Allen is telling, rather than showing.  Violation of the old adage, show, don’t tell.
Better than 2014's, Magic In The Moonlight, but pales beside Match Point.

Observation:  Sound mix - 5.1.  Haven’t paid attention to such in Allen’s recent films, but a step beyond 2.0 stereo.
Much of the music was classic Ramsey Lewis, circa mid-60s.

[Vultural]

Live Forever - 2003 - 8/10

Oh, to seize the moment, recognize your own time, and ride the tiger of fame.
Gleeful documentary of the 90s rise of Britpop - Cool Britannia, focusing on the lopsided rivalry between Blur And Oasis.
Plenty of music, video clips and concert footage. Interviews with Noel Gallagher, Damon Albarn, Jarvis Cocker, Louise Wener (Sleeper), Del Naja (Massive Attack).  And Liam.  Abso-frakking-tutely.  Liam Gallagher gabbing away is always worth your time!
Many groups barely referenced - Stone Roses, Suede, Verve. Others - where was Manic Street Preachers?
For some, the background history of the politics is distracting, others will find it helpful.

Not surprisingly, the sound was eventually appropriated and usurped by artists more accessible, less creative.
The end of Britpop seemed to be followed by all the Idol crap.
I worked at a large music shop back then, this doc is a giddy romp.

[Vultural]

All Things Must Pass - 2015 - 7/10

Documentary follows the rise and demise of Tower Records.
History charts the humble beginning to the pinnacle to the disastrous aftermath of “file-sharing.”
Entertaining throughout, though the last section is uncomfortable.
Greybeards share memories (Tower execs, Label moguls, famous shoppers) in between vintage photos.
Smiles all around, but one cannot escape the notion of widespread nepotism at HQ.
By 2004, giant record stores passed into memory, Gen X-ers were likely the last generation to shop the bins.

Rather difficult for me to rate or judge this objectively.
I shopped Tower Records on Sunset Blvd at least once a month during the 70s.
This was paradise for music buffs.  Even when I was stone broke, it was comforting to peruse endless albums.
Peaches was expensive, Licorice Pizza more so, Wherehouse and Music + were affordable, but lacked depth.  The Valley had a Tower in Van Nuys, but it was never as thrilling as the Sunset store.
I still own tons of recordings.  CDs sound superior, vinyl holds memories.

The bittersweet finale I understood personally.
A decade after shopping one last time inside Tower Records, I started working for, a rival deep catalogue record shop, and would be there until I switched off the lights in 2004.
It was one of the coolest jobs in the world.  Sadly, new generations will never get the chance.
In the 80s, the staff were knowledgeable and passionate music snobs, clubbers, collectors.  Half the crew was female, always, which was and remains unheard of in the extremely sexist record store universe.
By 2000, most of my coworkers had never bought an album in their life.  They downloaded tens of thousands of tunes that they never listened to.  Music was free, and free had no perceived value.
Causes for the demise of the music industry were referenced in All Things Must Pass.
Won’t bother to repeat them.  Things truly do vanish, however.
Traditions, technology, burger joints, friends, you name it.
Good documentary.  Likely to resonate more with viewers aged 30 or older.

10 minutes inside Tower Records - Sunset Blvd.
Back in the early 70s -

https://archive.org/details/casacsh_000018

[Vultural]

It's A Free World - 2007 - 7/10

Unpleasant, Ken Loach “message” film about the exploitation of undocumented workers.
Angela is fired from her recruiting job after repulsing a groping male coworker.
Soon enough, she and a friend set up their own black market agency.
Companies want temp workers, day workers, casual workers.
Immigrants, especially illegal immigrants without papers, are less likely to complain when cheated.
The females soon realize there is a lot of profit in flop houses, as well.
So they lease sh!tholes, jam them with illegals, double book the rooms so sleeping is only by shifts.

Others I viewed this with were horrified.  I shrugged and said it was fairly accurate, if over dramatized.
I worked with illegals for several years and most were treated OK, though we had one SOB boss who contacted Immigration every time payroll ran tight.

[Vultural]

Dreams Of A Life - 2011 - 7/10

Documentary about a woman's corpse, found in her London bedsit.
She had died three years earlier, Christmas presents around her, telly still running.
Three years.  How could anyone be so forgotten?
Interviews with old friends and coworkers served to remind us by what slender threads we hang onto each other.

[Vultural]

Ricki And The Flash - 2015 - 5/10

Feel-good smoothie about mom who abandoned kids and husband decades earlier to pursue rock n roll fame.
Now she returns to straighten everyones’ lives and remind them how special they are and how much mommy still loves them.
Story is predictable and contrived.  Characters are pencil lite sketches.
The bar where she and her band perform decades old cover songs looks like a cliché, and the lower echelon clientele would never drink enough to keep the rent paid in Tarzana (ain’t no cheap rent in that Valley burg).
Streep likely had fun playing a rocker (even a failure), but the character was as shallow as a birdbath.

Note - The females loaded this and when I asked what it was, they said, “Oh it’s mumble mumble.”
My radar flared that they knew I wasn’t going to enjoy this, and they were spot on.
I thought the whole movie phony, though to be even handed, everyone else in the room thought it very good.

[Vultural]

Shooting For Socrates - 2014 - 6/10

Sheesh, how many football shows are there?  I don’t review half the ones I sit though.
This isn’t even Premiere League, which is what the girls follow.  This is World Cup.  1986.
Anyway, Northern Ireland somehow made it into the World Cup tournament back in 1986.
Up against the mighty Brazil.
The film contrasts the situation back in Northern Ireland during the time of the “troubles” and the Thatcher Government with the sport hopes.  Troubles are alluded to, rather than the confrontational display.
The film is about underdog Northern Ireland getting division play against Brazil, captained by their philosophical leader, the title named, Socrates.
Little training shown, and round play is more from the TV onlooker perspective.
Passable - though I’ve seen better - this is not really feel-good, either.

[Vultural]

The Trip - 2010 - 6/10

I had been looking forward to this.
Road trip with Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon, spending a week driving from one hotel & gourmet restaurant to another.
Some food, of course, yet this was more a character study of a fading, almost-star and a regional player.
Throughout, both acted like prats in a pissing contest.
Depressing in a way, as viewers observe Coogan grasping that his youth, and his "moment" have passed.
Funny impersonations of Sean Connery and Michael Caine.  Darkly ironic, since Coogan and Brydon are dwarfed by comparison.
Fill your boots, man!

[Vultural]

A Decade Under The Influence - 2003 - 7/10

Broad overview of US filmmaking in the freewheeling 70s.
At the close of the 60s, film moguls passed into the sunset, and what seemed to get released were cash bleeding musicals.
Independent directors, taking their cues from European arthouse films of the 60s, stepped into the creative vacuum.
Stories were less epic, less fantasy, more personal, more relatable to modern audiences.
Doc covers a lot of ground in 2 hours.  A multi-episode series might have been better.  That said, since this first aired in 2003, many of the commentators have died.  So perhaps this captures their voices.

Many individuals not mentioned, or they declined to participate.  That’s always the way these shows go.
The end of the 70s saw smash commercial hits Jaws and Star Wars earn record profits.
Investors purchased studios as cash cows, focused on blockbusters and tent poles, and dialed down personal films.
Doc assumes passing familiarity with titles of the era.

[Vultural]

13 Tzameti - 2005 - 6/10

A young, barely employed roofer overhears a fractured discussion from a dying, drugged oldster about making a big score.
The geezer dies, the kid intercepts his mail and decides to follow the steps and take his place.
Easy money.
Black and white French film, stark and dark, turns grim once the kid arrives at the destination.
Once the money men arrive, and guns are passed, there is no backing out.
Again, this is the 2005 French original, not the 2010 Hollywood rehack.

[Vultural]

The Mad Doctor - 1940 - 5/10

Dull mystery / thriller, not completely without interest.
After psychiatrist’s ill bride tires of being sick and expires, he relocates to the big city.
Where he quickly meets a suicidal female with a tendency to stand on the outside ledge of tall buildings.
Luckily for her, he’s a psychiatrist.  Fortunately for him, she’s rich.  An heiress.
Predictable, slow in stretches, with a title that telegraphs any plot twists.

Ole Basil Rathbone (the shrink) and Martin Kosleck (chauffeur / sidekick) maintain a curious, eye raising relationship throughout.
Apparently the men live together and share a past studded with troublesome secrets.
They bicker, scheme, and engage in dark business together.
How this escaped Production Code censors is beyond me.

[Vultural]

Women Without Men - 1956 - 4/10

British “women in prison” film.  Slow, snooze inducing, with the slimmest of plot.
In this Hammer Noir, female agrees to reunite with her new boyfriend New Years Eve.
Unfortunately, when she tries to break up with her current “handler” he smacks her around.
She bashes him with a hand mirror and gets tossed in the slammer.
The warden is stern but fair, the guards no-nonsense but approachable, the inmates a happy family.
You got it - fantasy prison.
For various reasons, three convicts escape (including our heroine, who just has to keep that New Years Eve rendezvous).
Brief movie plods along.  I watched it because it was Beverly Michaels last movie.  Except ...
- - - - -
Blonde Bait - 1956 - 5/10

... Except the American distributor shot additional scenes, edited the plot, and fashioned a new storyline.
US nightclub singer performing in London is dating a man who is a traitor, smuggler, and killer.
She doesn’t know and agrees to marry him on New Years Eve after he takes care of “business."
When she tries to break the news to her manager, he roughs her up, she grabs that hand mirror, and -
She’s in the big house.
US State Dept want her out so they can nab her no-good, villainous man (Jim Davis, scion of TV’s Dallas).
The new scenes are edited in rather awkwardly, but this succeeds as a new film and, to my mind, slightly better.
Bev Michael’s hair is mousy in the Brit version, back to glossy blonde in the US release.
Neither film is all that hot.

Nevertheless, this was Beverly Michaels’ (great hard blonde) last film appearance.  Damn.