What's on your Daily Viewing List? (5 Viewers)

[Dave Moritz]

March 14th, 2020 Saturday

Well I was supposed to work today but found out only after arriving at work this morning the shift was cancelled so they could clean the facility!

Looks like movies are on the menu today!

Outbreak
1080p Blu-ray upconverted to 4K
Dolby True HD 5.1 upmixed to Auro 2D 7.1

The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug
1080p HD Blu-ray upconverted to 4K
DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1

Frozen ll
HD Digital upconverted to 4K
Dolby 5.1
Disney + / Apple 4K TV

 

[Mike Frezon]

After back-to-back stinkers (Casanova Brown and One Man's Way), Peg and I turned things around by watching my KL Blu-ray of The Ox-Bow Incident.

A timeless topic...and while the material may not seem as original/groundbreaking as it did back then the book was written and the film was made, it still stands up as a thought-provoking tale.

 

[Robert Crawford]

After back-to-back stinkers (Casanova Brown and One Man's Way), Peg and I turned things around by watching my KL Blu-ray of The Ox-Bow Incident.

A timeless topic...and while the material may not seem as original/groundbreaking as it did back then the book was written and the film was made, it still stands up as a thought-provoking tale.

It's been many years since I watched "Casanova Brown". Based on your negative comments about the movie, I need to dig up my Blu-ray to watch the movie again as I frankly don't remember much about it.

 

[Mike Frezon]

I'll be curious to hear your thoughts. One of my big problems centered around trying to decipher the motivations behind the actions of the title character.

 

[Mysto]

A so so movie with some great dancing from Donald O'Connor. The HD copy from Amazon is also so so. Worth the watch but wouldn't be in my repeat list.

 

[HawksFord]

Mirage (1965) - We watched this on a recently acquired Kino Lorber blu-ray on Friday night and then watched it again with the commentary track on Saturday. It's a thoroughly enjoyable thriller, and Gregory Peck does a fine job as a man trying to recover from amnesia. As is so often the case, the commentary track reminded me of a bunch of films I'd like to watch or re-watch. Since we are practicing social distancing, maybe I'll have time to actually get to a few of those.

 

[Matt Hough]

I watched from the TCM app this afternoon the Oscar-winning documentary Anne Frank Remembered. This masterful film which recounts the story of the Franks' two-year long attempt to hide from the Nazis with both the beforehand and aftermath of the story (which was new information to lots of people when this film first premiered) is just as powerful today as when it was first released. I still tear up when some of the courageous survivors remember poignant moments from their encounters with the Franks and from their own stories about the Holocaust.

 

[bujaki]

Day One:
It's Love Again (TCM app) 1936. Jessie Matthews with her toothy smile, long legs, gorgeous body, dances up a storm and sings quite nicely in this charming British musical co-starring Robert Young. I'm glad I saw this although the print was not so good. And I like Jessie.
My Blood Runs Cold (TCM app) 1965. Supposedly this film ended Troy Donahue's and Joey Heatherton's contracts at WB. No wonder. Psycho-sexual thriller that runs mostly cold. Jeanette Nolan's ever-changing coiffures are not to be believed! Soft transfer.
The Addams Family (Paramount BD) 1991. A true delight, made more so by a fabulous cast having fun. Anjelica looks great even though she underwent torture to achieve the "look," and Raul Julia shows just how multifaceted he was. What a tragic loss to lose him so soon!
The Magician aka The Face (Criterion BD) 1958. Ingmar Bergman's meditation on the relationship between the creator (the magician, the person with the face or mask, and the public. How the public can shower scorn on the artist, and how the artist can and will, eventually, triumph. The stark B&W images are superbly presented in this transfer. First part of a Max von Sydow tribute.
Day Two:
The Virgin Spring (Criterion BD) 1960. Part two of a Max von Sydow tribute. Ingmar Bergman's first Oscar. Can it be true that I haven't seen this film since I was 11 years old in 1961? I remember so many images so vividly! Unforgettable images abound and the storytelling does have the rhythm of a medieval ballad (I know, I'm a graduate in medieval studies). A must for serious film lovers.
Bellissima aka Beautiful (e one DVD) 1951. Visconti's last "neo-realist" film stars Anna Magnani in a tour-de-force performance as an obsessed mother trying to break her 5-year-old daughter into the movies. Funny, pathetic, moving, and ultimately loving portrayal of a family and a cannibalistic industry.
A Foreign Affair (Kino BD) 1948. Wilder's snapshot of the rotten underbelly of postwar Berlin. Not as cynical as Fuller's Verboten!, but still quite strong for 1948. Dietrich's portrayal is very courageous and she plays it with malevolent guile. Her songs are quite memorable and full of zingers. Highly recommended. The BD suffers from source damage. I remember watching a near flawless 35mm a century ago. Oh well. Nothing lasts forever.

 

[Toronto Argonauts]

 

[Robert Crawford]

On Blu-ray:

On the TCM app, I watched the fine documentary "Leslie Howard: The Man Who Gave a Damn"

 

[Dave Moritz]

March 15th, 2020 Sunday

Star Trek: The Search For Spock
HD DVR upconverted to 4K
5.1 Dolby

Spiderman: Far From Home
HD DVR upconverted to 4K
5.1 Dolby

 

[JohnRice]

Blade Runner: The Final Cut (1982): I keep being reminded why this is a masterpiece of cinema, which is kind of ironic, considering it is a flawed film. I recently got the 4K disc, which presents me with a dilemma. My living room system has a respectable 4K DV capable display, but just a decent 5.1 surround system, while my HT has a plasma with a significantly better 7.1.2 (basic) Atmos system. I chose the HT, and was I glad I did. Yeah, this movie has never looked so good, but I've always thought the soundtrack was... well... to be honest... awful. Holy Smokes! This new Atmos soundtrack is freaking awesome!!! I don't know how many times I've bought this movie, but the soundtrack has always been shrill and painful to listen to. No longer! Just a spectacular experience.

 

[Dave Moritz]

Hey John are both your displays the same size? If so just wondering why you do not put your 4K display in your HT room?

March 15th, 2020 Sunday

Toy Story 4
4K Digital / Dolby Vision
Dolby Atmos 7.1.4
4K Apple TV / Disney +

​

 

[JohnRice]

Hey John are both your displays the same size? If so just wondering why you do not put your 4K display in your HT room?

Things are just in a period of transition. The plasma would be awful in the living room, which is almost entirely windows, and it's extremely reflective. I've been waiting for the plasma to die, or to decide on a new one for the HT. I had planned on getting an LG OLED, but after getting the Vizio M Series in the living room, and being extremely happy with it, I decided I'd go with the higher model Vizio P Series for the HT. I can get a 65" Vizio QLED for $500 less than a 55" LG OLED or far less than half the price of a 65" OLED. I wanted to live with the Vizio for a while to make certain I thought I'd be happy with one for the HT, and for them to go on sale. They just went on sale this week, so now might be the time.

I'm also planning to get full-bore Atmos running in the HT with 4 in-ceiling RSL or ELAC speakers, but I have a lot of stuff I need to budget. Almost all of my appliances have died or are dying, so that factors in.

 

[Mike Frezon]

Here's my double feature from yesterday (quite a theme I had going on!):

I enjoyed BOTH films greatly.

It was my first-time viewing of the latest Terminator film. Seemed awfully familiar, yet a ton of fun.

 

[dana martin]

Whisky Galore!, really wish that Film Movement would add the subtitle feature , was available on the UK release from StudioCanal, but apparently not in here

 

[Robert Crawford]

Peg and I watched:

To us, this is one of the worst movies we've ever seen. The writing was bad. It didn't make any sense. The character's motivations were indecipherable. The performances were not great. It dragged. It wasn't funny. It wasn't romantic. We both readily agreed we will never want to spend time with it again.

This was a head scratcher for us.

First off, comedy is the most subjective of all movie genres. Based on what you wrote, I was prepared for the worst as the last time I watched this movie, to quote Billy Joel, I wore a younger man's cloths. I didn't have much of a memory of it until the movie started and then my recollection took over. I thought Frank Morgan was great in this movie and his scene with his grandson came back to me right off. Also, I remembered the

Spoiler

house fire.

I kind of enjoyed the movie, especially, the second half of the film. Granted, it's not among Cooper's best movies, but it's not among the worst movies I've seen in my life. Trust me, I've seen a lot of movies and this is far from being among the worst I've seen of them. Sure, the motivations of some characters didn't make sense, but I found that's the case for many comedies, particularly, from that film era. I guess I just go along with it and try to enjoy what I see in any movie. At times, the movie made me chuckle especially during the second half of the movie. Another thing, I always had a thing for Teresa Wright. Kind of like the girl next door thing. One more thing, this is a good looking disc from ClassicFlix.

My overall film grade is 2.5 based on a rating scale 1-5 with 5 being the best grade. In short, it's an average movie for me.

 

[Robin9]

I have that Casanova Brown Blu-ray disc and might watch it again tonight.

Yesterday I re-watched Western Union via the Koch Media Blu-ray disc I bought several years ago. Randolph Scott is excellent in this film.

 

[JohnRice]

I guess I just go along with it and try to enjoy what I see in any movie.

I'm going by that rule more and more. I simply don't understand when someone clearly goes into a movie intending or planning to hate it, or deciding early on that they hate it, then spending the entire time looking for reasons to hate it. It's just a waste of time and energy. Movies seem like a good opportunity to get out of my own head for a while. To find something new or an interesting perspective or idea.

 

[Mike Frezon]

Humor needs to make sense within its context for me to find it funny. And the story, as arranged in Casanova Brown, wasn't presented in a way that made sense to me. We just kept looking at each other and saying "This is stupid."

Like you say, subjective.