Movies Watched -- Green Zone (2010)

114 minute running time so at least 20 minutes too long. Bouncy cam, non-stop action, video-gamer special (never forget how many thousands of people really died). War Porn of sorts, and at its heart, a really dumb Hollywood thing… yes, of course non-existent WMD were a pretext for starting the war, everyone knew that from the beginning … but we need chief warrant officer “Miller” going rogue to get to the bottom of this fiction … funny to see the Entertainment Tonight host as head of the Coalition Provisional Authority, he probably would have done as good a job as the real guy … god, I hated this … fast forward. Give it a miss.

Don’t be naive, Freddy.

Movies Watched -- Foxcatcher (2014)

134 minute running time, so they could have trimmed 20 minutes or so, but this was really good, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. Steve Carell with prosthetic eagle nose plays John Dupont, nutty supporter of the US Wrestling Federation, Channing Tatum plays Mark Schultz (whom I do remember from early cage fights), and Mark Ruffalo plays Dave Schultz, Mark’s older brother, also an Olympic gold medalist. Interesting (tragic) story, well told. Highly recommended!

(Rex also liked it.)

Ornithologist, Philatelist, Philanthropist

Movies Watched -- Fire at Sea (Fuocoammare) (2016)

113 minute running time, so it could have been trimmed a bit … but this was a special film … a documentary, but not a conventional one. Life on the small island of Lampedusa (population 6,000) off the coast of Italy (shown through the simple times of a young boy), and the front line of the refugee crisis … desperate people crossing the Mediterranean trying to get to Europe — Sudanese, Syrians, Eritreans, etc. — first arrive here. I enjoyed it and can recommend it.

So many body bags….

Movies Watched -- Too Late For Tears (1949)

98 minute running time so just under the sacred 100 minute mark. A real film noir with blackmail, a femme fatale, multiple murders, Los Angeles and sleazy Mexico locales (once again, see Touch of Evil and The Hitch-Hiker), double-crossing dames, old wartime buddies, and sex — not graphic sex of course, but a more explicit approach, surprising for a movie made in 1949. My copy from “Alpha Video” was in terrible shape, but apparently there’s a restored version on Blu-ray available now. The movie wasn’t great, but it wasn’t bad, and it’s a must-see for noir fans.

You’re quite a gal, Mrs. Palmer

Movies Watched -- Swing Time (1936)

103 minute running time … some great dance scenes, lovely songs by Jerome Kern and Dorothy Fields (The Way You Look Tonight, A Fine Romance, and Never Gonna Dance — the last has the best dance scene, really moving, I shed a tear) … goofy story / comedy in between the musical numbers. I’ve always liked Fred Astaire’s singing. He does one scene in black-face, which will drive the PCs crazy, but those were the bad old days. Certainly a top ten movie from 1936, but I haven’t seen them all. Recommended if you like song and dance.

Ginger suffering from a mild case of nipple-itis

Movies Watched -- The Arbor (2011)

90 minutes, so the perfect length, but I only made it an hour in before quitting because it was just too depressing. Another horror story from a British housing project, just awful stuff … poor, dumb, foul-mouthed, miserable people — why watch them? Some toff down in London published the play, slumming it. Avoid.

I was a vewy pwetty girl, until someone waped me with scissows

Movies Watched -- Touch Of Evil (1958)

95 minute running time but feels much longer. I’d seen this one in the past and forgot about it. Old Orson Welles grumbling and bumbling around… some really neat camerawork, no doubt the man was way ahead of his time. Dumb story though. Mexican lesbian dopers a novelty in 1958. Sleazy California-Mexico border town featured (same as in The Hitch-Hiker). Welles as corrupt cop, Marlene Dietrich as fortune teller… Aiding justice, partner! Wasn’t thrilled with it, though it’s something every movie buff oohs and aahs over, but it’s just not that well put together, the story is no good. You can give it a miss.

Janet Leigh (Jamie Lee Curtis’s mom) in repose

Movies Watched -- Widows (2018)

128 minute running time so at least 30 minutes too long. Dumb, dumb story. Just ridiculous. A twist in the middle, but still, just bad. I have a soft spot for Steve McQueen (the director) because he made “Shame,” which I thought was brilliant, but this was just lousy. One good shot as they showed a car driving from the ‘hood in Chicago to a more gentrified part of the city, a short drive, well done, clever, but doesn’t make a movie. Bobby Duvall comes out of a crypt to swear a blue streak… way too much profanity in this movie. And some really graphic violence. Not recommended.

Rex, as usual, gets it right: “I never believed these grieving widows could ever form a workable alliance of lady gangsters.“

Dick Brody also didn’t like it: “These details … fit together with a technically impressive coherence that’s also dramatically ridiculous.“

A beautiful Latina, black, and Polish woman walk into a sauna….

Movies Watched -- The Hitch-Hiker (1953)

70 minutes, so on the shorter side, nothing wrong with that. Rare 1950s movie directed by a woman … story of a psychopathic killer who takes two men hostage and into the Mexican desert … some interesting dialogue about the guys being soft and not being able to escape because they cared about each other … one truly scary scene where the bad guy forces one of the men to shoot a tin can out of his buddy’s hand; you could see a psycho doing such a thing. It wasn’t a terrible movie, but I don’t recommend going out of your way to see it.

Bum eye, not bad, eh?

Flavorless Beer Made By Machines

Garrett Oliver of the Brooklyn Brewery … sharp guy:

Uploaded by Edible Films on 2015-02-17.