so, yes, then, following on from the post what i gone done earlier this month, yet more films it is that i have watched. a grand(ish) total of 6 (six) of them shall be commented on here, look you see. yes, i do appreciate that mostly, or for most, watching a film is not all that special; at the least not so special that they feel compelled to commit it to internet comment. my time for doing this most normal of things is limited, however, so forgive the indulgence.
as with the previous post (as mentioned) i had a rare bit of time free, with said time being (or happening) around, during or in that whole Christmas and New Year thing. the one of 2023 that turns into this year (at time of writing), 2024. for something of an unusual (if not peculiar) change, it was a lot of films i had not seen before, well, mostly. one of these here is one i am pretty sure i saw once before, but would not gamble on it being so.
these all got watched, as you can (kind of) see above via the greater good and glory of Commodore 64 mode, in fancy video. which would be blu ray. no, i am not ever switching formats again. my suspicion is that this "4K" fiddles so much with older films that they are likely to be no longer what the maker(s) of such film(s) intended. being honest (as i normally would be here) the only reason i sought to move to this blu ray format was because it was the only way you could get a proper version of Mad Max 2, for only on that disc can you get it complete (uncensored) and with the right name on it.
by no means is it that i know much of anything about marketing (or advertising), but still. i am really not sure that having "by the maker of Mad Max Fury Road" on the box is wise. yes, it is a true statement, the same person directed both. anyone watching this video (disc) on the basis of that comment, though, would be (i suspect) somewhat disappointed that Three Thousand Years Of Longing lacks any sort of barbaric post apocalyptic wasteland violence.
quite simply this film, this Three Thousand Years Of Longing, is a truly beautiful, uplifting, breath of fresh air sort of thing. i was recommended this off of someone and i shall always be grateful for such a kind gesture of suggestion. so yes, i recommend it too.
ostensibly the plot is a kind of vague yet direct variation of an Aladdin or rudimentary 'genie in a bottle' with the requisite three wishes sort of thing. ultimately it's a kind of love letter, or love film if you will, to the perpetual importance (and beauty) of storytelling. not since The Princess Bride have a watched a film so wonderful dedicated to the sheer joy of telling a story.
now, then, the one (1) of these films i am not entirely sure if i had seen before. or previously. for some reason i have a hazy (possibly wonky) memory of watching this one, Escape To Athena, on the tele one 80s era Christmas. i could be mistaken. what i do know is that i am in a Sir Roger appreciation group on one strand of social media. mostly we just share images of Sir Roger, or post a statement like wasn't Sir Roger great, and we all say yes. of late a few promo stills from this one have featured in that group, so i decided to pick up a copy. besides, Christmas is a time to watch Sir Roger films.
plot? hmn. something something Greece in World War 2, something something prisoner of war camp, something something valuable Greek relics and artefacts, something something steal them and escape. mostly this film appears to be an excuse for a quite impressive cast to get together for a good time and put together an almost coherent film. one of those ones you can watch again and again, especially when you get to see Richard Roundtree do this -
well, you will (or did) get to see him if you pressed play on the video above. and indeed that was no less than David Niven you get a glimpse of, in a most dapper cardie. the remainder of the cast features the likes of Telly Savalas, who(m) played, as he always seemed to, a Greek sex machine god, Elliott Gould (post-Streisand version), Sonny Bono (that one, and not that one) and, of course, Sir Roger, when he was simply addressed as Roger Moore.
deferential respect is very much at the fore with the latter, for the name of he (Roger Moore) comes up in massive letters during the credits. as to his part in the film, he plays a German soldier of some high ranking. yes, Roger does play the part with what one could reasonably define as a German accent. it is an accent what appears to come from the Shatner school of acting. interpret that as you will. certainly, yes, of course, Escape To Athena is one i would strongly suggest you watch.
a bit of a (kind) of double bill presentation here, then, as i am assured by certain (news and what have you) outlets that Oppenheimer and Barbie were (are) the "best" of cinema 2023. i see. well, from what i recall, this is likely true in the financial sense, for i believe both made lots and lots of money, more than was anticipated and an awful lot in regards of the "new normal" since all of that plague stuff. probably up there with how much the excellent Top Gun Maverick made, as well as that Avatar 2 which, like the original, everyone appears to have forgotten about. no, i did not watch that one and really have no intention of doing so, the original being so dull.
going left to right, then, and Oppenheimer was quite the perplexing paradox. for a start it is a Christopher Nolan film. the phrase "in Nolan we trust" exists for a reason. make no mistake, this film is made with the quality he is associated with, you are talking of an effortless peer of (and i do not say this lightly) Kubrick. acting is also outstanding, with Cillian Murphy surely in line for awards, followed closely (in a supporting capacity) by Robert Downey Jnr. Matt Damon is also good, but strictly in a Matt Damon doing Matt Damon way. yet, ultimately, my sense was "why make this"? a three hour epic about a famous scientist type. showcasing any personal proclivities he had is a footnote to history; that he may regret what he did with his theory is a given. i suspect this shall go on to become the most celebrated, in terms of awards, film what Nolan does, but ultimately will be the least fondly remembered of his works. but that is not to take away from the rewarding experience of watching.
conversely Barbie was clearly made to make money, via the medium of being a comedy with some musical numbers and a lurking (somewhat darkly) wry satirical comment on society, values, etc. a suspicion i had was that all of the jokes, if you will the value, were right there in the trailer. yet people, not that many speak to me, said no, see it, it's really, really goo. and, you know what, it is. if it had to be a choice between these two for "best" of 2023 then i would be full tilt Barbie. a film that makes one, or in this case moi, laugh, smile, cry, feel elevated and be served pause for thought, all in less (or fewer, if you like) than two hours. excellent.
hesitant would be a very good (as in accurate) way to describe my approach to Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny. whereas i thoroughly enjoyed the original trilogy on release in the 80s, and still fondly consider Raiders Of The Lost Ark and The Last Crusade, i never really thought or felt further was needed. not a great deal of Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull said there was much, if any, story left to tell, did it?
finally, then, or in conclusion for here, The Flash. sort of kind of linked to something in the previous paragraph, i believe this film "failed" mostly as one of the actors (i believe the ostensible title character, by default the protagonist) is now considered one of those "not nice" people what get boycotted, or cancelled in modern language. that's a shame, as i believe the "test audiences" ranted and raved at how excellent this film was. and they were not wrong, at all.
opportunity, and indeed temptation, existed at the time of its release to go and see it at the cinema, or if you like at the pictures. this i declined. mostly due to the reported running time, being given as north of two hours, but that was backed up with reviews (and comments) of it being rather (somewhat dull). quite a few people declined to see it too, which led (i read) to it being quite a financial disaster. oh. when i have asked people why they did not see it, some said "because it will be streaming on Disney+ soon", which proved to be the case. most, however, said "Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull", as in they had no wish to get f****d over again. i did stand and consider the purchase in the shop for a bit, but of course eventually i bought the video (disc), but also didn't rush to watch.
it turns out that this film, Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny, is actually pretty good. not exactly as great as the original three, but vastly superior to the 4th one. for context, it was entertaining viewing on Boxing Day morning (say around 10am), sat on the couch, when i could pause two or three (or 4) times and go for a cigarette. perhaps in a cinema it would have led to a numb backside and a yearning for it to end soon so i could appreciate Marlboro.
without going into the plot (ancient lost relic of power sought after, etc), the "twist" at the end was sort of kind of worthy of that in Raiders Of The Lost Ark. that was my initial thought. on reflection, though, it did occur to me that the plot could be seen as a second rate Da Vinci Code (remember that?) knock off. either way, it works.
now that they own vast swathes of cinema it will be interesting to see where, exactly, Disney goes in the pursuit of money. which is the only reason they make films. from what i can tell the Marvel films have reached saturation point and one of their major actors planned to be used for the next few years has got into some trouble. also, they have discovered that simple nostalgia is not a way to print money, with this one and the last two Star Wars films not going down too well. maybe they will just focus on making a quality product people actually wish to see, but far be it from me to suggest such.
truthfully i wasn't at all @rsed about this film. i am very much feeling fatigue from all these hero or super hero films. of course there was some curiosity about Michael Keaton returning to the role of Batman, but i assumed (as it turned out incorrectly) that all there was to that was right there in the trailers and related promotional material. both James and William spoke highly of it, so seeing it on sale for £8 (or a penny fewer than that) at HMV had me go sure, why not.
glad that i did, really. this was excellent. as in really, really f*****g good. i have no interest at all in the character The Flash (or the actor), so it was just as well they decided to make this pretty much just a straightforward Batman film, in all but name. all the ingredients which led to the "superhero" boom at the box office are here - it's witty, perfectly paced, full of tense action (with surprises) and superbly acted by all. further, the plot features one of the best, more intelligent explorations of the challenges of messing about with time / history that i have seen. this is a film i shall certainly watch again. might even dig out the original two Keaton Batman films on the back of it.
what a shame the ostensible lead did whatever he did, or got accused of whatever (no i have not read up, i am not particularly interested) it was that seems to have ended any chance of major success for this film. it would be fair to say that the DC comics films, at least since Dark Knight Rises (yet i really, really liked Man Of Steel) haven't won over audiences. this could have been a turning point for that, as truly this really was brilliant. unexpectedly so.
phew. well, that's that for this post. six (6) films i was overall very glad to have had the chance to sit down and watch. but now, alas, duty (as in verk) calls. my chances of getting to watch all that many more films in an immediate sense are somewhat limited, but you never know. it may be so that i take the odd break here and there, and use that time to watch a few more.
be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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