DSL's Movie/TV Reviews and Discussion

[Mike]

Thanks, that sounds like what I'm expecting. I'll probably still check it out at some point.

[UMStan White]

"A Serious Man" is three hours I'll never get back. Finally something Hannibal and I agree on. What did you think of "Blood Simple"

[WingsFan]

Just watch the trailer for 'Blood Simple" not sure how I missed this one, I have to watch that soon. M. Emmet Walsh was great in Straight Time playing a no non-sense street-smart parole officer, and a real dick. Surely one of the most iconic movie scenes ever getting his pants pulled down in the middle of a freeway

[Dr. Strangelove]

RE: Blood Simple, Walsh is easily the most memorable character in that.

[Hannibal]

I like Blood Simple OK.

[Cody_Russell]

Speaking of mob movies, has anyone watched The Irishman? I assume it’s good and It seems like a no-brainer but with that kind of run time, I’d prefer some validation before I commit.

I thought it was alright, nothing special. I always have problem with old actors trying to look/act young. Terrible CGI making them look weird at times instead of younger in any meaningful way and works mostly just as an annoying distraction. The dialogue wise- guy language looks and speaks danger has been done to death in basically all the mafia-movies and Scorsese himself? Getting the band back together isn't always a good idea.

Thought "The Irishman" was good, but it's a movie I will never want to watch again. Kinda a slow burn and lengthy.
Doubt it would crack my top 10 favorite Scorsese movies. For example ... I recently rewatched "Shutter Island" for the first time since it released. Shutter Island far superior Scorsese film when compared to The Irishman IMO.

[Mike]

I saw Shutter Island at the theater. Fantastic movie. I saw that it's on one of the streaming services. Might need to watch it again sometime.

[crashcourse]

chicago 7 was excellent

[Dr. Strangelove]

Over the past two months I've watched a bunch of classic Universal Horror movies...most of which I've seen before (not in a long time) but a couple new ones. Not sure if I'll say much about any of them later but this is a rough ranking

Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
The Invisible Man (1933)
The Mummy (1932)
The Black Cat (1934)
Frankenstein (1931)
Dracula (1931)
Spanish Dracula (1931)
Werewolf of London (1935)
The Raven (1935)
Dracula's Daughter (1936)

The only one of these that I wouldn't recommend at all (if you like the genre) is Dracula's Daughter, just because it's pretty boring and dull. Obviously a tolerance for older movies and older methods of acting helps.

[Jeff Buchanan]

Film starring Boris Karloff, Lon Cheney (the Werewolf) and Bella Lugosi were hugely popular in their day. There was sort of a revival of interest in their films in the late 50s. The movie Dracula was first screened in 1931 and a second version of it was produced in 1958. I was 10, growing up in Chicago and stayed up late to watch Shock Theater hosted by Marvin (Terry Bennet). I'm pretty sure the show ran all of DSL's list of films above. I don't think the shit that is presented as horror films these days come close to matching what these films brought to the silver screen in the 30s and TV during their rebirth in the late 50s. So, yeah, like that genre of films.

[Dr. Strangelove]

Film starring Boris Karloff, Lon Cheney (the Werewolf) and Bella Lugosi were hugely popular in their day. There was sort of a revival of interest in their films in the late 50s. The movie Dracula was first screened in 1931 and a second version of it was produced in 1958. I was 10, growing up in Chicago and stayed up late to watch Shock Theater hosted by Marvin (Terry Bennet). I'm pretty sure the show ran all of DSL's list of films above. I don't think the shit that is presented as horror films these days come close to matching what these films brought to the silver screen in the 30s and TV during their rebirth in the late 50s. So, yeah, like that genre of films.

Are you thinking of the Hammer Films version with Christopher Lee as Dracula? Because that came out right around 1958 and started its own line of sequels.

If you're looking for a unique one without "monsters" (well, there is a metaphorical monster in it), try The Black Cat. Nothing is depicted explicitly but that movie contains a Satan-worshipping cult, human sacrifice, implied incest, implied necrophilia, and someone is flayed alive. Amazing it got approved by a 30's film censor.

[Dr. Strangelove]

The Black Cat is also the first film where Lugosi and Karloff appeared together. The Bluray set I have contains a great commentary track that dives into their rivalry quite a bit.

[Jeff Buchanan]

Yep, Christopher Lee. Not a great film. Lugosi was the hands down star of the numerous films in that genre that screened in the 30s. Lee wasn't Lugosi, not even close. There was this interesting period between silent movies and talkies where actors still mugged appropriately for the feel of the scene the director was trying to produce. Lugosi could pull that off without looking silly. Chaplin was another. Karloff never had to because he was all taped up in the mummy gig but, man, he had a scary voice.

[Dr. Strangelove]

Yeah the vampires in Hammer films tended to be more like wild animals than Lugosi's Dracula. I forget the name of it, but the sequel to the first Christopher Lee movie is better.

[AlabamAlum]

Re: the Irishman: agree with whoever said the CGI to make him look young was bad. Also, it needed to be edited. It was watchable but not in my top 10 of that genre.