Armageddon Cliche-ridden, woodenly acted, scientifically dubious disaster movie, but gosh-darnit if the closing scenes don't bring a tear to the eye. Great song by Aerosmith, too.
American Son on Netflix- Predictable but so culturally relevant and visceral. It reminded me somewhat of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
The Woman In Black (2012) My second time watching and I enjoyed it almost as much as the first time (some five or six years ago). It straddles the line between schlocky cheap ghost train jumps and genuinely creepy atmosphere. It's kind of like The Haunting meets What Lies Beneath meets William Castle. Fortunately, the atmospheric stuff - all long shadows in passageways, flickering lights and gloomy, forbidding rooms - comes out on top and makes it very watchable indeed. And very unsettling as well. It's one of those films where I have to make sure the curtains are closed because that feeling of being watched gets into the psyche. Much of the delivery and phrasing is too modern for the period setting, Daniel Radcliffe's contemporary RP perhaps most of all. But he seems a nice young man, so all's forgiven.
The (new) Lion King I had heard critics were somewhat harsh on this movie. The Live-Action was jaw-dropping but I felt it lacked heart. It was like Disney were afraid to show too much darkness in fear of placing children on psychiatrists waiting lists.
Government Girl 1943 rom-com starring Olivia de Havilland. The rules of the rom-com have changed surprisingly little in the past eighty years.
Frozen (the first one) I don't really see why it's so popular but it is an enjoyable princess-as-hero adventure.
IT. Chapter 1. Wouldn't want to watch this movie in the dark first watch. More jumpy and gruesome, than Stephen Kings 1990 3 hour TV movie. Yet to watch chapter 2. I wonder what's in store?
Hope Floats (1998) I've always liked Sandra Bullock and it's nice to see how she's expanded her range through action, comedy and drama and developed into the Oscar winner she is now. Here she was also a producer.
The Irishman (2019). I was looking forward to seeing this so much as it contained so much gangster film royalty. It was great seeing Joe Pesci on screen again but overall the film was a big let down and far too long.
Liar, Liar Not a big fan of Jim Carrey but his films do sometimes have an interesting concept behind them and I found myself actually laughing once or twice.
The latest film I watch and LOVED was Midsommar. It's insanely good. Dont expect cheesy horror moves, don't expect jump scares, don't expect any kind of explanation. You will have to find out many, many things by yourself. You will have to dig up in the nordic/Vikings myths and culture to understand it. You will have to pay attention to a lot of tiny details. But if you use both your brain and instinct, you can potentially love this movie as much as I did. Many hate it, just you to know.
Picture Perfect 1997 rom-com directed and co-written by Glenn Gordon Caron and starring Jennifer Aniston. Fairly unusual premise of a female exec hiring a man to act as her fiance to enhance her business prospects before (inevitably) falling for him for real. It struck me that it was in a way a gender-reversal - I could see it being made in the 60s with someone like Tony Curtis or even Jerry Lewis in one of his less slapstick moods.