Film reviews - old and new

Watched Operation Mincemeat the other night on Netflix. True story from WWII about a deception using a corpse carrying fake I.D. and fake "secret" papers to try to divert German troops away from Sicily which the Allied Forces were about to invade (1943) to get a foothold back in Europe. Decent watch but I preferred the original film from the 50s The Man Who Never Was, although with the passing of time and the release of more factual info, the more recent film is probably more accurate, based as it is on a book on the operation by Ben MacIntyre. Kelly Macdonald plays the lead female but her attempt at a cut glass English accent doesn't quite cut the mustard.

I miss the movie reviews on tv. I thought mark kermodes slot was quite useful.

I genuinely think i go to fewer films now that it is not there to prompt me.

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Originally Posted by BILLYHIBS

Bridget Jones : Mad About The Boy

Don’t bother

Glad I didn’t pay to watch this

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I enjoyed it :greengrin

Didn't expect to but I was glad I shelled out to take my other half to see it at the Dominion, which is an indulgent but enjoyable cinema experience in itself.

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Originally Posted by Colr

I miss the movie reviews on tv. I thought mark kermodes slot was quite useful.

I genuinely think i go to fewer films now that it is not there to prompt me.

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Kermode hosts quite an enjoyable movie hour on Radio 4 on Tuesday mornings. It's more of a 'theme' show than a focus on current films, but I often seem to find myself driving when it's on so it's one of those longish listens you're happy to come across when you're on the road.

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Originally Posted by He's here!

I enjoyed it :greengrin

Didn't expect to but I was glad I shelled out to take my other half to see it at the Dominion, which is an indulgent but enjoyable cinema experience in itself.

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👍

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Originally Posted by Colr

I miss the movie reviews on tv. I thought mark kermodes slot was quite useful.

I genuinely think i go to fewer films now that it is not there to prompt me.

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Kermode and Mayo have a Podcast called Kermode and Mayo's take. It is on Apple Pods, YouTube and most other pod places. There is a bit of a paywall on the show but the abridged version is well worth a listen/watch. Kermode also does a show on Radio 4 with Ellen E Jones called Screenshot, these tend to be 40 minute themed shows and also covers TV, streaming services as well as films. I would recommend looking through the back catalogue on BBC Sounds and choosing the ones that appeal to you as I found certain themes didn't interest me at all.

I do miss Barry Norman on Film {enter year here}, it was like having a Halliwell's guide on TV. I watched it right through to it's end but lost interest in the Winkleman years but enjoyed Alex Brooker's episodes. There are a shed load of film reviewers on YouTube, the pick of the bunch is probably a Scotsman going under the pseudonym 'The Critical Drinker', he is irreverent, funny and often scathing of the films he chooses to review but he does like some of the things he watches!

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Originally Posted by Hibspur

Yes, that's been our experience too. This latest film does attempt to strip things back to a more straightforward plot but it's pretty feeble. They've basically run out of good characters in my view.

The mini series thing started off quite well with Wandavision and we also enjoyed Hawkeye, but as you say much of it just overcomplicates things.

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I lost interest when they started bringing in multiverse and time travel stuff, it just gets too convoluted but worse than that it means that any situation can be undone so there's no jeopardy or suspense, the writers can just ignore three laws of physics etc for something impossible to happen.

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Originally Posted by Hibspur

From the first Iron Man until the final Avengers film (plus a couple of subsequent Tom Holland Spiderman movies), I used to very much enjoy watching the Marvel movies with my youngest son. They've badly lost their way in recent years though and Captain America: Brave New World just doesn't cut it. It's significantly shorter than some of the three-hour plus films they were previously turning out, but it felt longer. Awful dialogue, woeful plot and just all round dull. Not even Harrison Ford can salvage it.

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Spolier warning. Don't read further if you plan to see this film. (But I'd advise against doing that, it's awful, imo).

We went to see it last night.

I actually burst out laughing when, after Red Hulk had almost demolished the Whitehouse and the Washington monument, thrown flaming cars and wrecked several houses and streets, in his attempts to kill Captain America, before smashing his drones and ripping his wings off, C.A. says "I know you could finish me with one punch, but I don't think you really want to". :faf:

Mel Gibsons new film flight risk was terrible, Marky Marc isn’t the greatest actor ever but it must have been a favour getting involved in that one jeeez

The latest Bridget Jones film: I was dragged along to see that today and... O.M.G... how bad was that!

First up; Renee Zellwegger's 'acting' was utterly awful. She played practically every scene with the same ridiculous grin, playing the part of what appeared to be a sixty-something schoolgirl. Admittedly the plastic surgery probably doesn't help her show a varied range of emotions.

The largest part of the story was over sentimental, cliched nonsense. The lines were like quotes from poems that just didn't fit in most of the scenes, and usually had me scratching my head as to the relevance.

Fitting in the hunky toy-boy lover in the middle third of the film was a totally cringeworthy experience. The young guy clearly had an oedipal complex, and probably needed new glasses.

The conclusion of the film, how all her issues were to be resolved simply with a new relationship, was obvious from the first appearance of the irritating schoolteacher.


They've gone from 'Bridget Jones' Diary' to 'Bridget Jones' Diarrhea'!

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Originally Posted by Keith_M

The latest Bridget Jones film: I was dragged along to see that today and... O.M.G... how bad was that!

First up; Renee Zellwegger's 'acting' was utterly awful. She played practically every scene with the same ridiculous grin, playing the part of what appeared to be a sixty-something schoolgirl. Admittedly the plastic surgery probably doesn't help her show a varied range of emotions.

The largest part of the story was over sentimental, cliched nonsense. The lines were like quotes from poems that just didn't fit in most of the scenes, and usually had me scratching my head as to the relevance.

Fitting in the hunky toy-boy lover in the middle third of the film was a totally cringeworthy experience. The young guy clearly had an oedipal complex, and probably needed new glasses.

The conclusion of the film, how all her issues were to be resolved simply with a new relationship, was obvious from the first appearance of the irritating schoolteacher.


They've gone from 'Bridget Jones' Diary' to 'Bridget Jones' Diarrhea'!

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That review reads like Barry Norman has been resurrected 🤭

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Originally Posted by speedy_gonzales

That review reads like Barry Norman has been resurrected 🤭

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Attachment 28581

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Originally Posted by Keith_M

The latest Bridget Jones film: I was dragged along to see that today and... O.M.G... how bad was that!

First up; Renee Zellwegger's 'acting' was utterly awful. She played practically every scene with the same ridiculous grin, playing the part of what appeared to be a sixty-something schoolgirl. Admittedly the plastic surgery probably doesn't help her show a varied range of emotions.

The largest part of the story was over sentimental, cliched nonsense. The lines were like quotes from poems that just didn't fit in most of the scenes, and usually had me scratching my head as to the relevance.

Fitting in the hunky toy-boy lover in the middle third of the film was a totally cringeworthy experience. The young guy clearly had an oedipal complex, and probably needed new glasses.

The conclusion of the film, how all her issues were to be resolved simply with a new relationship, was obvious from the first appearance of the irritating schoolteacher.


They've gone from 'Bridget Jones' Diary' to 'Bridget Jones' Diarrhea'!

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Said it earlier but I enjoyed it. But if you're being 'dragged along' you're probably not likely to.

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Originally Posted by He's here!

Said it earlier but I enjoyed it. But if you're being 'dragged along' you're probably not likely to.

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I haven't seen it but Mrs R and her chum loved it.

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Originally Posted by He's here!

Said it earlier but I enjoyed it. But if you're being 'dragged along' you're probably not likely to.

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Still rated 6.8 out of 10 on imdb out of 14k reviews. That keeps it in touch with the rest of the films in the series.

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Originally Posted by Keith_M

The latest Bridget Jones film: I was dragged along to see that today and... O.M.G... how bad was that!

First up; Renee Zellwegger's 'acting' was utterly awful. She played practically every scene with the same ridiculous grin, playing the part of what appeared to be a sixty-something schoolgirl. Admittedly the plastic surgery probably doesn't help her show a varied range of emotions.

The largest part of the story was over sentimental, cliched nonsense. The lines were like quotes from poems that just didn't fit in most of the scenes, and usually had me scratching my head as to the relevance.

Fitting in the hunky toy-boy lover in the middle third of the film was a totally cringeworthy experience. The young guy clearly had an oedipal complex, and probably needed new glasses.

The conclusion of the film, how all her issues were to be resolved simply with a new relationship, was obvious from the first appearance of the irritating schoolteacher.


They've gone from 'Bridget Jones' Diary' to 'Bridget Jones' Diarrhea'!

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Thank you

Someone who agrees with one of my reviews

Absolute purile inane drivel

Produced in one last desperate attempt to keep the franchise running

The least said about Renee Z the better

Mark D’Arcy obviously didn’t want anything to do with it

Quite right

Edit :


First one was a classic

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Originally Posted by BILLYHIBS

Thank you

Someone who agrees with one of my reviews

Absolute purile inane drivel

Produced in one last desperate attempt to keep the franchise running

The least said about Renee Z the better

Mark D’Arcy obviously didn’t want anything to do with it

Quite right

Edit :


First one was a classic

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I believe the Mark character dies in the book the film is based on so there wasn't really much scope for Colin Firth to play a big role apart from flashback scenes.

I haven't seen the third one but I think it got pretty grim reviews so I guess they wanted to make up for that. This one got great reviews which is why I went. Thought it was on a par with the first one. Can't recall if I've seen the second one.

Watched The Terminator on Friday night, not as good as its sequel and v the special effects have not aged well - especially when you watch in 4k, but the movie stands up.

Tonight I watched The Fall Guy, which won’t be troubling the Oscars but also doesn’t take itself seriously at any point and is an enjoyable enough watch.

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Originally Posted by He's here!

I believe the Mark character dies in the book the film is based on so there wasn't really much scope for Colin Firth to play a big role apart from flashback scenes.

I haven't seen the third one but I think it got pretty grim reviews so I guess they wanted to make up for that. This one got great reviews which is why I went. Thought it was on a par with the first one. Can't recall if I've seen the third one.

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Third one is Bridget Jones’ Baby

First one was far superior to this latest one imho although as another poster has pointed out both score 6.8

Renee was sooo much better

Zoe Saldana can sleep easy tonight

I’m out 😀

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Originally Posted by matty_f

Watched The Terminator on Friday night, not as good as its sequel and v the special effects have not aged well - especially when you watch in 4k, but the movie stands up.

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For some reason I love the first one and have never been that into the sequel (which is good). Arnie as the bad guy really works for me. Story a bit more straightforward.

I've seen the third one but didn't bother with any after that...

The Cameo are doing a run of classics that have all had mentions on here of late; The Big Lebowski tomorrow evening,this Friday and Saturday its Cinema Paradiso, Sunday-Wednesday 12 Angry Men, then next Thursday David Lynch’s Mulholland drive. You cant beat a bona fide classic on the big screen.

I caught Fight or Flight on Sky a few nights ago.

What a lot of absolute rubbish....it's brilliant! Switch off and have 90 mins of unbelievably OTT violence and gore with a large spattering of very effective comedy.

Ratings have been mixed but it's got the feel of a classic 90's action movie.

If anyone has seen it I'd be interested to hear your thoughts :greengrin

Watched in the last week:
The Fall Guy - drivel but quite enjoyable with it. Doesn't take itself at all seriously, wouldn't bother watching it again though.

Snatch - an oldie but a goodie. We'd watched Lock, Stock a few weeks back and I'd forgotten how good a movie that is, so it was good to follow up with Snatch, which I think is the better film.

We went to see Anora which won a bunch of Oscars and I'm glad I did.

It was an incredible performance from Mickey Madison who I last saw playing the eldest daughter in the excellent comedy Better Things. It was extremely brave of her to take on the role of a sex worker because the plot was very sexy and quite explicit.

There are genuinely funny moments in a story which I've seen accurately described as "genre-hopping".

The men in the film are all very good too and I'm surprised that there was no Oscar nomination for Mark Eydelshteyn who was brilliant in the role of Vanya.

I assume the role was deemed to be co-lead rather than supporting so he was up against people like Adrian Brody, Timothée Chalamet and
Ralph Fiennes instead of supporting actors.

Watched A Complete Unknown last night was a decent watch with excellent performances from Timothee Chalamet Elle Fanning and Ed Norton

Was never a Bob Dylan fan growing up was not my bag but was surprised by how many of his songs I knew having been covered by many other artists

Defo worth a looksee

At a theatre near you or IPTV

I watch Sisu again over the weekend as it has just dropped onto Netflix UK.

Still think it is a great film albeit a bit far fetched at the end it is still an enjoyable way to watch Nazis getting killed in interesting ways. Jorma Tommila plays Aatami Korpi the almost completely silent hero who is now a miner but was a Finnish Commando in the Winter War (1939-40) against the Russians, killing hundreds of Russian Troops and earning the nickname from the Red Army of Koshchei (The Immortal).

The plot is pretty simple, the nazis are very bad, the dog is adorable and the ending quite ridiculous. Written and directed by Jalmari Helander most famous for Big Game where Samuel L Jackson plays the POTUS, it is very Tartantino-esque and the young Fin and POTUS rescuer in Big Game gets a role in Sisu, this time as the nazi tank driver. Also gets a thumbs up from me for being 90 minutes long, which I will admit is not Tarantino like at all but means I don't get DVT from sitting down to watch a movie!!

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Originally Posted by Oscar T Grouch

I watch Sisu again over the weekend as it has just dropped onto Netflix UK.

Still think it is a great film albeit a bit far fetched at the end it is still an enjoyable way to watch Nazis getting killed in interesting ways. Jorma Tommila plays Aatami Korpi the almost completely silent hero who is now a miner but was a Finnish Commando in the Winter War (1939-40) against the Russians, killing hundreds of Russian Troops and earning the nickname from the Red Army of Koshchei (The Immortal).

The plot is pretty simple, the nazis are very bad, the dog is adorable and the ending quite ridiculous. Written and directed by Jalmari Helander most famous for Big Game where Samuel L Jackson plays the POTUS, it is very Tartantino-esque and the young Fin and POTUS rescuer in Big Game gets a role in Sisu, this time as the nazi tank driver. Also gets a thumbs up from me for being 90 minutes long, which I will admit is not Tarantino like at all but means I don't get DVT from sitting down to watch a movie!!

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:aok: Good shout. I'm right in the mood for watching Nazis get their painful comeuppance...

The Black Bag

Straight face spy film where everyone takes it serious. Quite enjoyed it. Absolutely no emotions throughout the film as if I didn’t care what happened but I enjoyed it 3/5

Kneecap was far better than I thought it would be. Not quite the Trainspotting of this generation but still a brilliantly made film, funny and thought provoking 4/5

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Originally Posted by hibsbollah

The Cameo are doing a run of classics that have all had mentions on here of late; The Big Lebowski tomorrow evening,this Friday and Saturday its Cinema Paradiso, Sunday-Wednesday 12 Angry Men, then next Thursday David Lynch’s Mulholland drive. You cant beat a bona fide classic on the big screen.

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I think I saw Mulholland Drive at the Cameo when it first came out. Quite possibly The Big Lebowski too. Spent a lot of time there or in the Filmhouse back then. Filmhouse was good for getting something to eat before a movie but I kind of preferred the vibe of the Cameo.

I watched Speak No Evil

I enjoyed it. High concept horror thriller with limited locations giving you a claustrophobic feel. James McAvoy is outstanding in it

4/5