Track the Films You Watch (2005) - Page 6

george kaplan · 01-24-2005, 01:02 PM

I've seen all the W.C. Fields films in the boxset, and It's a Gift is the only one I want. Much funnier and better than any of the others. The others do fall flat for me, so much so, that, as much as I want It's A Gift, I've passed on the boxset and will wait until it becomes available separately.

**HTF Ads**

Joe Karlosi · 01-24-2005, 01:58 PM

I recently saw IT'S A GIFT for the first time and I enjoyed it. Pretty funny, that one. A friend of mine brought the new set over (he's a big fan) but it's the only one we watched from it. A year or two ago he brought the Criterion disc of THE BANK DICK to my house and I didn't really care for that one. So I'm on the fence as to whether I should take the plunge into the Fields Collection Set or not.

Jim_K · 01-24-2005, 06:05 PM

Out of the WC Fields films/shorts I've seen, It's a Gift would be at the top.

First time viewings in Red
Revisit from my collection in Blue
Out of

Friday Night Lights (2004) (9/10)
One of the best films of last year is this tough-nosed drama about the true story of a West Texas High School football team and their tumultuous season of ’88. This is a rare sports film that’s unpredictable, gritty & has a lot of heart. Easily makes my 10 Best of ’04 & will be added to my collection soon.

Becket (1964) (7/10)
This fine period/costume drama tells the story of King Henry II of England (Peter O’Toole) & his relationship with his drinking buddy turned Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Becket (Richard Burton). An interesting film for history buffs (which I am) though I do prefer this film’s follow-up/sequel, the superb A Lion in Winter.

Michael Elliott · 01-24-2005, 09:12 PM

01/17/05

Mickey's Good Deed (1932) A

Mickey sells Pluto to get some cash so he can help some poor cats at Christmas. This is probably my favorite Mickey short up to this point. I think this is the first one where the mouse was actually NICE!!!!

01/18/05

Gary Cooper: American Life, American Legend (1991)

Documentary hosted by Clint Eastwood that takes a look at the life and films of Gary Cooper. This is more disappointing than anything else because for the most part there’s only Eastwood’s narration over film clips. The clips usually give away the endings and we never get to hear from Cooper’s friends or co-workers.

01/19/05

Mickey’s Mellerdrammer (1933) A

Mickey Mouse short is a retelling of Uncle Tom’s Cabin and of course would be considered politically incorrect in today’s standards since Mickey appears in blackface. I really didn’t think it was too offensive because no one is made fun of and the story of Uncle Tom is appreciated and not made to look bad.

01/20/05

Beatles Diary, The (1996)

Incredibly boring, stupid and silly documentary dealing with the famous group.

01/21/05

Goodfellas (1990)

The best mob movie ever. Period. I’ve always loved this film but the beauty of it keeps getting better and better with each viewing. This was probably around my 20th viewing and it’s quickly climbing my charts of the greatest films ever made. There isn’t a single performance out of touch, especially Liotta and Pesci. The direction is stellar and Scorsese strong detail throughout just shows how hard this guy actually works. What really sets this film apart from other mob movies is obviously the look and style but also the story, which during the first half shows us the cool side of things and we understand why someone would join. Then the second half we see how things end and that the mob isn’t worth it for a second.

01/22/05

King of Comedy, The (1982)

A sometimes funny but often depressing look at a wannabe comic (Robert DeNiro) who is obsessed at hitting the big time so he kidnaps a talk show host (Jerry Lewis). Here’s another Scorsese film that gets better with each viewing but it’s rather hard to watch this thing because of how brutal it is and how embarrassing the DeNiro character comes off. The scene where DeNiro invites himself to Lewis’s house is one where I often have to squint my eyes. The performances are wonderful and the fantasy sequences make this one of the best of the decade.

Reform School Girl (1957)

A good but troubled girl gets into a car with a psycho who runs over a man, killing him. The girl refuses to give the psycho’s name so she’s sent to reform school where she gets into more trouble but thankfully there’s a teacher there who wants to help her. Stupid, boring, slow and pointless juvenile delinquent flick that isn’t even bad enough to get any laughs. The performances are bad, dialogue stupid and the story is just plain boring.

01/23/05

Steeplechase, The (1933) A-

Mickey’s racehorse gets drunk before the big race so he must put a couple people in a horse outfit to race. A pretty funny short with some nice animation and the jokes, including the drunk horse, are nice.

Shanghailed (1934) A-

Mickey and Minnie are taken hostage out at sea. Some very funny gags including the bad guy and his wooden leg plus Mickey’s fight is rather amusing.

Mickey’s Man Friday (1935) A-

Mickey travels to the jungle where he must fight off cannibals. There’s plenty of wonderful action to keep this film a going plus some funny stuff dealing with Mickey’s pal.

01/24/05

Falo Crest (1987)

I’m really not sure how to “review” this one. Cult Spanish director Jess Franco’s hardcore spoof of Falcon Crest features Lina Romay and various others doing….well, hardcore scenes. I normally don’t watch this kind of stuff but I plan on watching all 175+ Franco films so this one gets a viewing. Again, I don’t know how to rate porn but the actual “film” has some nice laughs (even though I had to watch it in Spanish) but there’s way too much disgusting stuff that I won’t go into here.

Joe Karlosi · 01-25-2005, 04:51 AM

Quote:

Beatles Diary, The (1996)

Incredibly boring, stupid and silly documentary dealing with the famous group.

Mike, why even waste your time on these unofficial made-for-cheap-video "documentaries"? Try A HARD DAY'S NIGHT, HELP!, YELLOW SUBMARINE or LET IT BE instead.

george kaplan · 01-25-2005, 05:16 AM

Quote:

Try A HARD DAY'S NIGHT, HELP!, YELLOW SUBMARINE or LET IT BE instead.

SteveGon · 01-25-2005, 08:08 AM

Dead and Buried (1981)

Viewed 1/24/2005

Gory thriller about a series of murders in a small New England town. The local sheriff investigates and discovers that the victims are returning to life and looking better than ever! Atmospheric, though logical inconsistencies hurt it. Worth a look.

out of

The Yakuza Papers: Proxy War (1973)

Viewed 1/24/2005 (first viewing)

Part three in Kinji Fukasaku's Japanese gangster epic. Series protagonist Shozo Hirono (Bunta Sugawara) is caught in the middle of a gang war while planning to oust his old boss. Convoluted to the point where you need a scorecard to keep track of who's who, but Sugawara has the presence to keep your interest.

out of

Michael Elliott · 01-25-2005, 01:17 PM

Quote:

Mike, why even waste your time on these unofficial made-for-cheap-video "documentaries"?

Two reasons:

1. Everything's worth viewing once.
2. Sometimes they're pretty good.

I enjoyed the other documentary that I watched but this one here was bad.

Quote:

Or the excellent Beatles Anthology.

I've got this one and enjoyed it a lot. I'm going to wait a few years before a second viewing however. According to Netflix (first time using them), I should have A HARD DAY'S NIGHT tomorrow.

SteveGon · 01-25-2005, 01:34 PM

The Roaring Twenties (1939)

Viewed: 1/25/2005

Primo gangster flick starring James Cagney as a jobless WWI vet forced into a life of racketeering during Prohibition. Along the way he's joined by conniving war buddy Humphrey Bogart and falls for showgirl Priscilla Lane.

"He used to be a big shot."

out of

Joe Karlosi · 01-25-2005, 03:09 PM

Quote:

Hell, even Magical Mystery Tour has a number of reedeming features (basically a ton of great music videos).

It holds up a lot better now than it did then, I think. As you say, it's at least worthy for the music "promos" and the general weirdness of the psychedelic sixties.

Quote:

BTW, don't look too hard for Let it Be, since it's not yet available.

And that's still impossible for me to fathom! I still have my original VHS tape by "Magnetic Video" from 1981!!! It's something very special to me because it was the very FIRST home video movie I ever owned, in ANY format. I'll probably always save it as a relic even when a DVD is issued someday.

Joe Karlosi · 01-25-2005, 03:12 PM

Quote:

1. Everything's worth viewing once.

Oh, I couldn't agree with that. I've seen lots of "Bombs" that were never worth the time I wasted on them. Of course, you can't really know that until you've watched them.