What did you watch this week? (06/11-06/17)

War machine (2017 Netflix): Well, this isn't your usual war story. There is only one scene of warfare near the end and it last 10 minutes. This also ain't your usual Brad Pitt performance. His character is very unique and hard to play and he slipped out of it a few times. Otherwise I really enjoyed the script. Some clever writing is at the foreground. Some parts are gonna stick with me. Like the one where the General (Pitt) is confronted by a female journalist. Overall, the atmosphere was a bit dry though. 6/10

Repo Men (2010 DVD): This is a bad movie, but the good kind. There is just enough elements to make it enjoyable. The acting is over-the-top but good, the story is long and predictable but still interesting and the soundtrack and special effects were solid. It's the second movie I watch this week that involves a character finding a typewriter in a suitcase and start using it. ( The family) The place the typewriter ended in this one was fun. The movie is bloody but it's not that violent. My favourite scene was the five-year-old Asian girl doing a surgery on the knee. 6/10

Léon The professional (1994 DVD): Last night I was well rested and in need of a good movie so I watched the most important Luc Besson film I still hadn't seen. With its rating of 8.6, back in the Imdb boards days, I read many praises about it and I think they were well deserved. Charming, thrilling, funny, violent and wonderfully made, it is indeed a great ride. 8/10

Well, I finished the first season series of Shake It up https://moviechat.org/tt1661326/Shake-It-Up

Yakuza Graveyard (1976, Japan)
Another great yakuza movie from Fukasaku Kinji. This one centers around renegade cop Kuroiwa, who becomes disillusioned by the corruption of the police force, who are in bed with one of the two big local yakuza gangs, and he begins drifting toward the other one. He befriends and pledges brotherhood with a yakuza boss and falls for the wife of the gang's imprisoned leader. He finds among the yakuza an acceptance and brotherhood he never had among the cops. Racial discrimination is a major theme here, with Kuroiwa himself a Japanese but an "outsider" born in Manchuria, and several of the gangsters from Korean background, made into what they are in part by the discrimination they've been subjected to by Japan's insular society. All-out war between the two big gangs breaks out, and Kuroiwa sides with his new clan against the cops and their preferred rival gang. This is classic Fukasaku, who opposed romanticized portrayals of the yakuza and cops alike and made many films tinged with social commentary and depicting the ugly reality of the Japanese underworld.

I don't think exhaustion was to blame for your reaction to The Family and War on Everyone. I know it's not good to comment on something you haven't seen to the end, but I didn't have your restraint when it came to War.... I stopped that one pretty early on.

Repo Men I enjoyed. It's not the best film, but for what it is, it's pretty entertaining.

Leon is a favourite. And Gary Oldman is fantasticly over the top in it, which brings me joy every time.

Prevenge (2016)
Fueled by revenge, a pregnant woman goes on a killing spree (Prevenge. Get it. Get it!). We all know pregnancy hormones make you go a little mad, but this film takes it to a whole other level. It should have been called “Kill, Talk to your unborn child, Repeat”. Interesting enough premise, but a bit too repetitive for my tastes.
https://moviechat.org/tt5154288/Prevenge

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Logan (2017) It was so much grittier than the other movies and a bit sad. I like reading people's different views on how things played out in regards to the comics vs the movies. Lots of perspectives makes for interesting conversations.

Last Night (2010) Pretty rich people and their first world relationship problems. Despite my snarky criticism, I liked it. The soundtrack is sublime. I am a huge Clint Mansell fan.

Captain Fantastic (2016) I fantasize about living like this family. Being one with nature and away from the modern day addictions to consumerism.

Gone Baby Gone (2007) Say what you will about either one of the Affleck boys, I think they make good movies.

A Perfect Getaway (2009) A fun little thriller.

Train to Busan (2016) - zombie movies are all the same - there is an outbreak and the world goes to hell with lots of gore. The twist here is that all happens on a train. Emotional, well made, just few stupid moments, fun and sometimes sad - no zombie fan should miss it. 7/10

Rakka (2017) - I'm not a big admirer of Blomkamp. He has good ideas, throws in some fine visuals and too many stupid things. I will never forgive him for ruining Elysium - it could have been one of the best cyberpunk movies, if not for the naive political message that bends everything around it. Seriously, I still can't regenerate enough mana to watch Chappie.

His new project is a studio producing cool short movies. Rakka is the first one - post-apocalyptic sci-fi - and Sigourney Weaver is in it. Brutal, depressing and beautiful. Some may not like that it runs like a prolonged fake trailer, but much more won't like the inconclusive ending (like in a trailer). Anyway, don't miss this! It is free on Oats Studios youtube channel, where you will find trailers for upcoming attractions and some Trump related jokes. 7.5/10

Slow week for me SK.

Dodgeball-2004. This movie still cracks me up every time I see it.
"That's it, boy. Get in there all nice and deep-like."- 7.5

Mother-1996- Albert Brooks, Debbie Reynolds.- Some laughs, nothing special- 6

Sullivan's Travels -1941-Joel McCrea, Veronica Lake. A classic in every sense. Veronica Lake hid her
pregnancy from Sturges during filming of this movie. You could never tell. Also a tie-in to
a famous Cohen Bros. movie. -8.5

Had to do some travelling these past weeks so here is a summary for 3 weeks in total :)

From your list, I watched Leon, both regular and director's cut. I remember even having the laser discs (yes I am that old :)). Huge fan, definetly a rare 9/10 in my books!

Les Revenants (The Returned) French Version 2012 Season 1+2: very intriguing, set-up is like Lost. Strange place, strange happenings, each episode introducing one character while the overall arc continues, flashbacks, Others etc. Hope there will be a season 3 even though it can stand on its own as-is and be considered finished. Otherwise it might turn too messy and unsatisfactory like Lost did. Might check out the US remake in the meantime (blargh), but didn't read lots of good things about it. French version so far (2 seasons) 7.5/10

The unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (2017) Season 3: love the humor, sometimes reminds me of old 70s, 80s zucker abrahams zucker movies where stuff happens in the backgrounds, such as silly signs, people doing weird things etc. hard to catch coz it might happen in a split second. other than that, good writing, and short episodes are easy to digst anyways 8/10

The Keepers (2017) Season 1: extremely intriguing and unsettling, shows the power of the church misconducting as so often reported 9/10

Mindhorn (2016): rather silly, i sat through it for the sake of it 5/10

Ants in the Pants (2000): no clue why i watched this, was suggested by netflix so i took t he bait. german teen movie 5/10

john wick chapter 2 (2017): fantastic action scenes. saw this on a long haul flight on a small screen, can't wait to rewatch in the home theatre. rating so far 8/10 for action alone

get out (2017): also saw this on the same flight. interesting take on the racism angle with a forever-young twist 7/10