Watch, Watching, Watch -- Keep the change you filthy animal!

[Ran]

Watched Being the Ricardos on Amazon Prime. Minor Sorkin, I love Nicole Kidman generally but not specifically in the role of Lucille Ball, Javier Bardem was good at capturing the essence of Desi (or at least, his public persona). While it covered a piece of history I didn't know anything about (several intersecting crises including accusations that Ball was a member of the Communist Party), the most interesting thing about it really was just to see how a 50s television comedy was made. Their production company, Desilu, was hugely successful in part because they were really innovative.

Then rewatched PTA's Boogie Nights for the umpteenth time... only this time to be distracted and left the credits running, only to discover more than 20 years after its release that right at the end of the credits there's some more, and somewhat mysterious, dialog featuring Dirk Diggler! Did everyone know about this but me? And what do you folks make of its meaning?

Spoiler

Clearly, Dirk's saying lines from his new Brock Lasner film... but is he rehearsing while getting laid, or is this a suggestion that at some point his fading popularity leads to taking the Brock Lasner series to the gay market? Or is this all a last dying dream, if you buy the theory that he was actually killed and everything that follows is his dying fugue?

And then Nicholas Winding Refn's The Neon Demon, starring a young Elle Fanning and featuring (to my surprise; I forgot he was in it) Keanu Reeves in a minor role as a sort of sleazy, antagonistic role as a crude and grasping motel owner/manager. Hugely polarizing film, as I recall, with some critics loving it and some hating it. It was in competition for the Palme d'Or, though. Regardless, it's basically a very mannered, typically stylish film from Refn, this time providing a harrowing metaphor for the fashion industry and the world of modelling. Cliff Martinez reunited with him to provide the score, and it's a pretty good one. The first stretch of it was a little somnambulant, I admit, but at a certain point I clicked into its pacing and vibe and went with it. The end sequences are a large part of why it received both boos and standing ovations at Cannes, I gather... some real Only God Forgives type stuff.

[Cas Stark]

I didn't finish Being the Ricardos.  The concept was fine, but everything about the execution--the annoying double framing, the casting, the Sorkin MESSAGES--was annoying.  Ten years and 25lb lighter, Bardem would have made a great Desi.  At no time, past or present was Nicole Kidman ever a good idea to play Lucille Ball.  I never, not even in the I Love Lucy scenes felt I was watching even an approximation of Ball.  

[Veltigar]

I forgot I also watched the South Park: Post Covid - The Return of Covid special over the weekend. It was alright, although I don't feel like South Park is that relevant anymore. Perhaps it's the length of these specials or it is just showing its age but taken together the specials were pretty forgetful. Mostly because they lacked bite. South Park has always been a bit too willing to commit to "both side of this debate are douchebags and idiots" (most notoriously on the climate crisis) and they did that here as well.

If you are not going to make fun of some of the outlandish anti-vax idea and treat people who are being obnoxious about wearing masks properly/getting vaccinated in the same way as the snowflakes who can't wear a mask or get their shot, then there is something wrong with the show's outlook. Dangerous + obnoxious should come in for more ridicule than just obnoxious.

1 hour ago, Ran said:

And then Nicholas Winding Refn's The Neon Demon, starring a young Elle Fanning and featuring (to my surprise; I forgot he was in it) Keanu Reeves in a minor role as a sort of sleazy, antagonistic role as a crude and grasping motel owner/manager. Hugely polarizing film, as I recall, with some critics loving it and some hating it. It was in competition for the Palme d'Or, though. Regardless, it's basically a very mannered, typically stylish film from Refn, this time providing a harrowing metaphor for the fashion industry and the world of modelling. Cliff Martinez reunited with him to provide the score, and it's a pretty good one. The first stretch of it was a little somnambulant, I admit, but at a certain point I clicked into its pacing and vibe and went with it. The end sequences are a large part of why it received both boos and standing ovations at Cannes, I gather... some real Only God Forgives type stuff.

I remember disliking The Neon Demon intensely despite the fact that I was a big fan of Only God Forgives. What is striking for me is just how unmemorable Neon Demon was. I don't remember a thing about its plot, the ending sequence or even that Keanu was in the movie  I do recall Jenna Malone but that's about it.

[Isis]

Hardly watched any TV/films over the holidays compared to previous years. We mostly spent the time doing jigsaws and listening to podcasts in the study, or listening to music/hanging out with the cats in the kitchen. Best Christmas ever - we moved house in 2021 and no longer have bloody awful neighbours.

I did give in and watch Wheel of Time though. Kind of predictable and meh really. I only read the first four books I think, before I got bored and gave up. I don't know what I was hoping for when the source material isn't all that. I seem to recall it was a lot of teenage angsty stuff - and that was all there in the show as well. The representation of channeling is decidedly dull after the first episode too. (even Discovery of Witches does a better job with magic on screen).  I thought they might do something...better? The scenery and the countryside they travel through did look rather delicious and Rosamund Pike is fantastic as expected, but she can hardly carry the whole show herself. 

[Zorral]

Got about half through the first episode of the David Tennant Around the World In 80 Days -- PBS, Masterpiece.  Gave up.  Perhaps the following episodes are more interesting, but as far as I'd gotten every location, every character, every event I've already seen in other programs more times than possible to count. Victorian (1872) wealthy  Incompetent (Tennant-Fogg) out of action-adventure water, feisty VIctorian young woman determined to prove to otherwise indulgent, wealthy, important father she can do what men do and their dicks won't fall off, a youngish French-African guy who rolls valet, street smart, competency, w/mysterious past, on the run, all into one character, check, dropping into one-way-and-another, sometimes literally dropping, into fraught historical actions, you betcha -- Paris, 1871,  the violence of the Paris Commune (yes, the show futzed dating and history there, right at the beginning!).

Beautifully produced, but there isn't a spark of snap or sizzle.  The lighter is a masterfully fabricated item, but it is empty of fuel.  Maybe someone here in the UK has already seen it can say whether some parts ever catch fire?

[Veltigar]

@Mexal boy you weren't kidding with that Yellowstone season three finale. I'd be pissed if it ended like that when I had a year to wait for the next dose, but damn it, now that I know I can get straight to it I am regretting the fact I have plans this evening XD

 

[dog-days]

Re Around the World in 80 Days. I've seen the first four episodes. No, you're bang on. It carries on doing what it's doing in a well-intentioned vaguely progressive but gentle cloud. Slightly less challenging than The Musketeers and Merlin which occupied a similar family-friendly slot in the schedules. 

Though it is good to watch if you're a bit drunk and not able to do much more than coo over the on-location shooting and images of distant lands where the sun shines for more than five minutes a day. Also good if you have an older relative that loves spotting famous actors and has a fairly blatant crush on David Tennant. 

Now that the holiday's over, I will absolutely watch the rest of the series if it's a Sunday and I have nothing else to do. 

 

[Zorral]

Thanks -- I will not be bothering any longer.  Croxxed that tat off my list.  

[HoodedCrow]

There’s nothing wrong with David Tennant!:)

[dog-days]

4 minutes ago, HoodedCrow said:

There’s nothing wrong with David Tennant!:)

Wouldn't dream of being even mildly derogatory about him! Wouldn't know how, to start with. It would feel like kicking a Scottish chihuahua. 

[DireWolfSpirit]

Disappointing to hear the AtWin80days PBS offering is not what was hoped for.

It makes it worse as I was hoping for an effort that finally lived up the wonderful book.

I didn't think the Niven or Chan versions had accomplished that previously.

Also, yes the Yellowstone S3 finale was an all-time great cliffhanger.

I am yet to see S4 so it taunts me still.

[williamjm]

3 hours ago, Zorral said:

Got about half through the first episode of the David Tennant Around the World In 80 Days -- PBS, Masterpiece.  Gave up.  Perhaps the following episodes are more interesting, but as far as I'd gotten every location, every character, every event I've already seen in other programs more times than possible to count. Victorian (1872) wealthy  Incompetent (Tennant-Fogg) out of action-adventure water, feisty VIctorian young woman determined to prove to otherwise indulgent, wealthy, important father she can do what men do and their dicks won't fall off, a youngish French-African guy who rolls valet, street smart, competency, w/mysterious past, on the run, all into one character, check, dropping into one-way-and-another, sometimes literally dropping, into fraught historical actions, you betcha -- Paris, 1871,  the violence of the Paris Commune (yes, the show futzed dating and history there, right at the beginning!).

Beautifully produced, but there isn't a spark of snap or sizzle.  The lighter is a masterfully fabricated item, but it is empty of fuel.  Maybe someone here in the UK has already seen it can say whether some parts ever catch fire?

I've seen three of the episodes and I agree with dog-days' opinion. I think it falls in an awkward gap where it's too daft to be any kind of serious drama and not entertaining enough for a fun adventure story. It's a pity because the locations look good and the actors are decent but the story is lacking.

[DMC]

Just finished two episodes of the new Dexter.  I'm through episode 7 - there's 10 total and the ninth just aired last night.  Gotta say I'm enjoying it thus far.  It's not great, but it's shaping up to be a solid season of Dexter - definitely better than anything after the fourth season - and very interested how they'll conclude it.

[Zorral]

2 hours ago, HoodedCrow said:

There’s nothing wrong with David Tennant!:)

Honestly -- he looks as though he's phoning it in.

They spent so much money on this -- it shows -- and it's, just dead, in the water.  More accurately it falls like a lead ballon . . .  

[Larry of the Lawn]

11 hours ago, Ran said:

Cliff Martinez reunited with him to provide the score, .

Are we talking the drummer Cliff Martinez of Captain Beef heart and RHCP?

Love Boogie Nights but have not seen the end credits part you're talking about.  saw Licorice Pizza yesterday and absolutely loved it.  Not sure I've seen a better depiction of young love on film.  What a perfect balance of the dialogue and camera revealing the story [and] characters instead of everything else.  Loved the lack of real exposition or trying to have things make sense (even an outright subversion of this with some lines from Alana).  

Might not be a Great Film but I thought it was a great movie and maybe PTAs best since Boogie Nights.  Probably going to go see it again this week of I can find a showing that is mostly empty again.  

EtA: difficult to understate how close this one hit to home.  Not a time period I was alive for but I'm not sure I've seen anything capture that first time you feel that attraction you don't even get or understand how to handle as a young adult.  Alana Haim (especially) and Cooper Hoffman killed it, loved all the cameos and smaller parts too.  

Fans of I think You Should Leave may notice likely coincidental resemblance of one scene featuring an uncredited  PTA regular to the Drivers Ed skit.

[Ran]

3 hours ago, Lermo T.I. Krrrammpus said:

Are we talking the drummer Cliff Martinez of Captain Beef heart and RHCP?

Yep. He's fine some very cool soundtracks for Refn as well as for Soderbergh (Traffic, Solaris, Contagion, The Knick, and a few more)

I definitely would like to see Licorice Pizza. 

[Deadlines? What Deadlines?]

Zone 414: It's on Netflix so I decided to check it out. Jesus Christ what a piece of shit. How the hell did Guy Pearce get sucked into this?

I was determined to stick it out.  It improves a little in the second half but not much. Pearce is fine. The female lead has some good scenes. That's about it. I don't know if they had multiple cinematographers or drunk camera operators but some scenes are beautifully shot and others are really bad. I don't normally notice framing that tries to achieve something and fails, but I noticed it here. Overall it's trying to be gritty sci fi and comes off as derivative, poorly executed, and ridiculous. Some of the dialogue is embarrassing.

It's the first film for Andrew Baird who's IMDB page is mostly music videos. Written by Bryan Edward Hill, who has writing credits on Titans and some recent stuff for DC and  Marvel comics.  Wikipedia claims the production budget is only $5 million, which is actually impressive but I doubt it's true. 

Finally, what the hell is Travis Fimmel doing in this? Not, "what is he doing in this?" Rather, "what is he doing in this?"

Apparently it's some kind of insane, slightly effeminate, billionare genius man-baby weirdo thing and it's just fucking baffling. Like, imagine Eldon Tyrell with zero charm, a ridiculous blonde wig, a beer gut, doing a low energy Jame Gumb impersonation. I'm at a loss to describe it.

I'm sure Pearce was acting opposite him thinking, "You asshole. Fuck you, you asshole." And for some reason they gave him this weird, rough, orange complexion that was hilarious to look at. The budget definitely didn't go there because you could totally see the makeup. 

[Isis]

13 hours ago, Ran said:

Yep. He's fine some very cool soundtracks for Refn as well as for Soderbergh (Traffic, Solaris, Contagion, The Knick, and a few more)

Drive.

[Ran]

13 hours ago, Isis said:

Drive.

Yep! Though I admit the songs from that one tend to be the most memorable part -- Kavinsky's "Nightcall", College & Electric Youth's "A Real Hero" -- for me.

 

On 1/3/2022 at 6:32 PM, Veltigar said:

remember disliking The Neon Demon intensely despite the fact that I was a big fan of Only God Forgives. What is striking for me is just how unmemorable Neon Demon was. I don't remember a thing about its plot, the ending sequence or even that Keanu was in the movie  I do recall Jenna Malone but that's about it.

Interesting. I don't think I'll ever forget the last two bits, or Keanu's role:

Spoiler

Jesse's nightmare with Keanu breaking into her room as she slept and then forcing her to basically swallow the knife he forced into her mouth ...  gross, and it being Keanu Reeves doing that was kind of mind-blowing because it was so against type.

Jena Malone's character, Ruby, getting off on a corpse that she straddles was pretty wild, too. The later scene with blood gushing out of her vagina as she lay nude on the floor was practically tame.

And then the end bit, with Gigi regurgitating Jesse's eyeball before killing herself, only for Sarah to pick up the eyeball and swallow it down... ugh.

Refn's messed up, man. Heh.

In other news, I guess I'm on a PTA kick and will make my way up to There Will be Blood at least. Watched Magnolia, still as good as I remember. The kiss between John C. Reilly and Melora Walters reminded me of the later Punch Drunk Love. One of Tom Cruise's best performances, as well. Just a beautiful picture all around. 

[Zorral]

For those of us who really enjoy watching good medieval action-adventure on the screen, I am going to again recommend the 1997 BBC Ivanhoe adaptation from Walter Scott's novel.  It has a most excellent cast, including Captain Frederick Wentworth, er Julius Caesar, er Ciaran Hinds, Sauruman, er Christopher Walken (that latter error may be excused because Lee appears and emotes exactly as he does in Jackson's LOtR -- and is as Bad!) and others.  It has updated without changing the story or characters both Rowena and Rebecca, making them far more like what women of their world were in those days. It also jettisoned other elements of the novel that make it difficult reading for most people who aren't doing Literary History.  The production is excellent -- it shows that most castles of the Norman era really were fortresses, not luxurious palaces, we get the contrast between various religious houses and orders and those who run them.  We see a Saxon Hall and estate that has managed to survive since 1066. The battles are small in the way they mostly were -- but deadly too.  The improvised on the spot battering rams, catapaults (or were they trebuchets?) were so realistic.  Perhaps my only criticism is that King Richard's coloring is all wrong!  It continues to be available on APrime, 6 meaty episodes.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118354/fullcredits