Last film watched

[paddy no 11]

Conclave is decent 7/10

Also watched an adaptation of John mcgaherns that they may face the rising sun. Pretty good all round though definitely read the book

[cashead]

Paddington in Peru

It was lovely, like a big, comfy jumper.

[Mikey Brown]

Conclave is decent 7/10

Also watched an adaptation of John mcgaherns that they may face the rising sun. Pretty good all round though definitely read the book

Is Conclave as dry as it looks? I’ve heard it’s great, but can only imagine it being very long and full of very serious, hushed conversations. Maybe that’s fine though.

[paddy no 11]

Conclave is decent 7/10

Also watched an adaptation of John mcgaherns that they may face the rising sun. Pretty good all round though definitely read the book

Is Conclave as dry as it looks? I’ve heard it’s great, but can only imagine it being very long and full of very serious, hushed conversations. Maybe that’s fine though.

It's like that yes, and there's a fair chance your completely bored with it but I was in the humour for it, if you're too busy for it then Bypass it It's not a classic by any means. Strange darling is a way better film and may heal your wounds from watching the substance

[Son of Mathonwy]

The Substance.

My god. Absolute fucking dog shit.

1 or 2 laughs near the start and that was it for humour. I thought this was going to be a black comedy? Made any sort of point it was trying to make within the first 5 minutes and then just hammered you over the head with it for nearly 3 hours. Horrible, condescending writing. A whole load of terrible acting outside of the stars. Some of the most obnoxious camera moves and production choices possible, yes even the ones that were “making a point”, and then the nerve to do a big show-boating Carrie-esque finale.

Truly awful. I can’t believe this is the film people have been raving about.

Watched this last night and I was pretty bored by it, if it wasn't for qually I'd have turned it off I'd say. I can't believe kermode gave it his favourite film of the year!

I have to say I thought it was great. Not a classic, but a really solid body horror, with a very strong visual style. Like a monstrous hybrid of Cronenberg, and Verhoeven with a slice of Lynch. And a female slant on Jekyll & Hyde and Dorian Grey too. I have to say, it was the OTT Lynchesque final sequence that really won me over.

Don't expect brilliance, don't take it too seriously, but it's a good film. ( IMO.)

[Mikey Brown]

The Substance.

My god. Absolute fucking dog shit.

1 or 2 laughs near the start and that was it for humour. I thought this was going to be a black comedy? Made any sort of point it was trying to make within the first 5 minutes and then just hammered you over the head with it for nearly 3 hours. Horrible, condescending writing. A whole load of terrible acting outside of the stars. Some of the most obnoxious camera moves and production choices possible, yes even the ones that were “making a point”, and then the nerve to do a big show-boating Carrie-esque finale.

Truly awful. I can’t believe this is the film people have been raving about.

Watched this last night and I was pretty bored by it, if it wasn't for qually I'd have turned it off I'd say. I can't believe kermode gave it his favourite film of the year!

I have to say I thought it was great. Not a classic, but a really solid body horror, with a very strong visual style. Like a monstrous hybrid of Cronenberg, and Verhoeven with a slice of Lynch. And a female slant on Jekyll & Hyde and Dorian Grey too. I have to say, it was the OTT Lynchesque final sequence that really won me over.

Don't expect brilliance, don't take it too seriously, but it's a good film. ( IMO.)

Lol. I’m sure this is part of where I went wrong. My opinion on it has probably softened slightly since my initial viewing.

The marketing of it probably didn’t help. I guess there’s only so much your brain can tune out the hype. Same with Barbie really. Average seems pretty underwhelming after you’ve already been sold that it’s a masterpiece.

I’ve yet to check out Strange Darling, but it’s interesting how that is now getting rave reviews having been a complete flop in terms of marketing, while the Substance was absolutely everywhere. I don’t know how much of a coincidence that is.

[Son of Mathonwy]

Watched this last night and I was pretty bored by it, if it wasn't for qually I'd have turned it off I'd say. I can't believe kermode gave it his favourite film of the year!

I have to say I thought it was great. Not a classic, but a really solid body horror, with a very strong visual style. Like a monstrous hybrid of Cronenberg, and Verhoeven with a slice of Lynch. And a female slant on Jekyll & Hyde and Dorian Grey too. I have to say, it was the OTT Lynchesque final sequence that really won me over.

Don't expect brilliance, don't take it too seriously, but it's a good film. ( IMO.)

Lol. I’m sure this is part of where I went wrong. My opinion on it has probably softened slightly since my initial viewing.

The marketing of it probably didn’t help. I guess there’s only so much your brain can tune out the hype. Same with Barbie really. Average seems pretty underwhelming after you’ve already been sold that it’s a masterpiece.

I’ve yet to check out Strange Darling, but it’s interesting how that is now getting rave reviews having been a complete flop in terms of marketing, while the Substance was absolutely everywhere. I don’t know how much of a coincidence that is.

Yeah, I try to watch things with as little foreknowledge as possible. Unfortunately there must be some!

[paddy no 11]

Watched no other land

Like I needed to be more depressed about Palestine

Full view ethnic cleansing on display, this is going to get worse now

[paddy no 11]

Watched no other land

Like I needed to be more depressed about Palestine

Full view ethnic cleansing on display, this is going to get worse now

Surprised this got the full Oscar nomination

[Mikey Brown]

Watched no other land

Like I needed to be more depressed about Palestine

Full view ethnic cleansing on display, this is going to get worse now

Surprised this got the full Oscar nomination

From a political or film-making POV?

[paddy no 11]

Watched no other land

Like I needed to be more depressed about Palestine

Full view ethnic cleansing on display, this is going to get worse now

Surprised this got the full Oscar nomination

From a political or film-making POV?

Political

[Mikey Brown]

Has anyone watched (or even just tried to watch) The Nightingale? I'd read it was fantastic but didn't know much about the plot. I got 25 minutes in and had to turn it off when we got to the third violent rape.

This is really just a PSA in case anyone else does what I did. It's going to take a while to get that out of my head.

I understand the woman who directed it has a lot of very serious points she wants to make, but it was far too much for me. I've finally found a film I want to watch less than Guardians of the galaxy.

[paddy no 11]

Has anyone watched (or even just tried to watch) The Nightingale? I'd read it was fantastic but didn't know much about the plot. I got 25 minutes in and had to turn it off when we got to the third violent rape.

This is really just a PSA in case anyone else does what I did. It's going to take a while to get that out of my head.

I understand the woman who directed it has a lot of very serious points she wants to make, but it was far too much for me. I've finally found a film I want to watch less than Guardians of the galaxy.

I watched this when it came out, did you make it as far as the scene with the child er dying?

It's certainly a mixed bag of a film,. Overall I thought it was good effort but can see why anyone would think otherwise

[paddy no 11]

Watched election and red rocket as they have the same directior as the gut who made anora, which I'll get to soon

Red rocket was excellent

[Mikey Brown]

Has anyone watched (or even just tried to watch) The Nightingale? I'd read it was fantastic but didn't know much about the plot. I got 25 minutes in and had to turn it off when we got to the third violent rape.

This is really just a PSA in case anyone else does what I did. It's going to take a while to get that out of my head.

I understand the woman who directed it has a lot of very serious points she wants to make, but it was far too much for me. I've finally found a film I want to watch less than Guardians of the galaxy.

I watched this when it came out, did you make it as far as the scene with the child er dying?

It's certainly a mixed bag of a film,. Overall I thought it was good effort but can see why anyone would think otherwise

Ugh. I did not. Of course there’s more.

Part of me feels glad I didn’t just watch all the worst bits before turning it off and missing what may have been a good film afterwards.

[paddy no 11]

It's a decent film afterwards but not unmissable by any means

I'd say your up to speed enough on the horrors of colonialism

Have you seen the proposition?

Different subject matter but snowtown is another aussie film you must not watch

[paddy no 11]

Gladiator

I didn't have high expectations but even the little hope I had was quenched pretty early, a complete waste of everyone's time

[Son of Mathonwy]

Horror films (plus some almost horror) I've seen in the last year or so, in roughly descending order of quality:

Oddity - very creepy, a bit arty, Irish. Different.
Strange Darling - more thriller than horror, but a great twisty, Tarantino-esque plot.
Longlegs - Nick Cage at his most bizarre (which is saying something). Reminiscent of the darker parts of Twin Peaks.
Cuckoo - conceptually very strange (still not 100% clear on some things!) but really different.
Heretic - Hugh Grant is Hugh Grant but, weirdly, is not out of place in this claustrophobic piece.
Late Night with the Devil - 70s US chat show/demonic possession. It works.
The Harbinger - low budget, extremely bleak lockdown horror.
Exhuma - Korean, a bit of adventure mixed in with the evil spirits.
The Substance - vivid, stylish body horror. All dials set at 110%
Nosferatu - beautifully shot (although why remake it and not make Nosteratu look like Nosferatu?). Weak ending (but that's Dracula).
The Shade - slow, with plenty of psychological horror, humanity and ambiguity.
Stopmotion - solid, very much what you'd expect from a stopmotion themed horror film.
Birth/Rebirth - a little bit sci-fi, not scary, but effective.
Elevation - similar situation to A Quiet Place (but this actually makes sense). More sci-fi action than horror, plot a little too simple.
Pandemonium - a portmanteau film! Great opening, super-bleak, but let down by the quality of the individual stories.
Arcadian - another one like A Quiet Place, but much more ambiguous (far too many unanswered questions). Subdued(!?) performance from Cage.
MadS - one-shot French zombie film. That's it really. It's okay.
Daddy's Head - weird British sci-fi horror, brought down by lack of explanation (and this film really needed an explanation).
Don't Look Away - okay film ripping off the Weeping Angels MO.
They Wait in the Dark - really low budget unfortunately didn't stretch to good actors.

Others, not really horror but all good in their own way:
A Ghost Story - an art film, not a horror film. Touching or bizarre and abstract, take your pick.
The House That Jack Built - Lars von Trier, really nasty serial killer film with a streak of pitch black humour.
Red Rooms - super-grim arty French Canadian film.
The Act of Killing - truly horrific documentary (more than any film above), following real killers from Indonesia's mass killings of 1965-66 talking about and re-enacting their crimes. Real psychopaths, really disturbing.

[Mikey Brown]

The act of killing is one of those I'm intrigued by, but know I absolutely don't have the stomach for.

I absolutely loved A Ghost Story. The kind of self-pitying bullshit that really gets me going.

Does Mandy qualify as horror? That's absolutely fantastic. One of the ultimate Nic Cage roles IMO.

Not horror, but definitely horrible, rewatched Killer Joe the other day and wow that movie is fucked. Supposedly quite faithful to the real life of a cop who moonlights as a hitman.

[Son of Mathonwy]

The act of killing is one of those I'm intrigued by, but know I absolutely don't have the stomach for.

I absolutely loved A Ghost Story. The kind of self-pitying bullshit that really gets me going.

Does Mandy qualify as horror? That's absolutely fantastic. One of the ultimate Nic Cage roles IMO.

Not horror, but definitely horrible, rewatched Killer Joe the other day and wow that movie is fucked. Supposedly quite faithful to the real life of a cop who moonlights as a hitman.

The Act of Killing is a strange one. Some might find it boring. It's definitely eccentric. But watching this collection of psychopaths - variously cheerful, thuggish, calculating and stupid - reminisce and boast about their despicable acts is an experience. You keep thinking 'oh, wait, these really are those guys. They really did those things . . .'

Yeah, I was a bit thrown by A Ghost Story (expecting some creepiness) as it's really about the human condition.

Mandy is cool. Probably not horror. Psychedelic revenge fantasy??

I'll have to watch Killer Joe.

[paddy no 11]

The goldman case - corncerning the murder trial of French leftist Pierre Goldman, the courtroom drama was is an OK film but you think a wider film of goldmans life could have been a much better film.