Morning all 🍂
UK-folk, don’t forget to get yourself into some woods in the next few weeks — the leaves are looking gorgeous. They’re even managing to give some autumnal life and deep colours to this drab industrial estate.
My Saturday:
When I saw this in the cinema upon release I thought it was a fairly flawed follow-up to The Dark Knight (2008). It was a very good film. But it was a bit long and had a villain whose motives were more vague and less believable than the Joker’s.
My experience wasn’t helped by seeing it in IMAX and being unable to hear the dialogue for most of the film (there wasn’t a problem, it’s just how Christopher Nolan likes his audio. Which is insane. And it’s the reason I don’t see new Nolan films in the cinema anymore).
Since then though it’s become one of my rewatched staples, and I’ve seen it another 6-8 times. Though my feelings for it remained the same. That it was great, but rather flawed and lagged in parts.
But I’ve just gotten back from seeing it in the cinema again. And I’ve walked away with an increased opinion of it. Firstly, it wasn’t in IMAX, so I could hear basically every word.
But more than that it was just wonderful seeing a proper high-quality blockbuster in the cinema. The cinematography, soundtrack, sound design, and action were great to see on the big screen. Aside from Civil War (2024), I haven’t had a cinema experience come close to it for quite a few years. Sure, there’s some cringy moments – especially from Anne Hathaway’s Catwoman. And it remains a flawed film. But it’s still a Nolan film, so it’s many times better than nearly all the dross that I see these days.
The Dark Knight Rises is still a wonderful film to sit back and experience. 83%
Find out where to stream it. This review is also on Letterboxd. See my original review from 2012.
Remembering Robin Williams, who left us 10 years ago today. His comedic genius and deep humanity continue to be missed.
“Air” is about the creation of Air Jordan shoes at Nike. It’s silly and corny, but very enjoyable.
Moving along at a quick, fun pace and feels a bit like an Adam McKay film at times.
This is also quite the ‘Dad film’ (another one for Matt Damon, after Ford v Ferrari).
You might have missed “Air”. But you should correct that, as it’s a great way to spend 111 minutes and very much worth a watch. It’s hard to dislike it.
Also: are you ever unsatisfied by the “where are they now” segment at the end of “based on a true story” film, when they don’t go into enough detail? Well this delivers in this department.
After “Air” you should watch:
71%
Find out where to stream it.
This review is also on Letterboxd.
Sunday so far: a walk, a shop and a burger from a greasy spoon. 🥾🌲🍔
Next: Tour de France and then either Snatch or Hot Fuzz. Steak pie for dinner. 🚵🍿🥧
I struggled to find a TV show to watch. Tried “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” and “Presumed Innocent”. Both were fine, but didn’t grab my attention.
So on a whim I tried the TV spin-off of the film “Ted”. I mean who asked for this? The poster alone turned me off. But it’s genuinely very good.
Imagine a world where being single isn’t just frowned upon—it’s outlawed. That’s the premise of The Lobster. In this dystopian society adults have 45 days to find a romantic partner. Fail, and you’re transformed into an animal of your choice.
It’s an odd premise and an odd film. When I saw it in the cinema first time around, I loved it. I hadn’t seen Yorgos Lanthimos' work before, so I was surprised and delighted by its weirdness (and he’s now one of my favourite directors).
Its genuinely funny in its absurdity and I love it. It could perhaps have 15 minutes cut from it and its ending isn’t quite strong enough. But this a odd and wonderful film. You’ll probably either love it or hate it.
81%
Find out where to stream it.
Read this review on Letterboxd.
I keep on hearing such mixed things about The Bear season 3, it’s insane.
I wouldn’t know. found S01E01 so anxiety inducing that I never watched another episode of it. 🫨
This review is worth it for its Astral Weeks joke alone.
Not the most original artwork by Discovery+ here.
This always looked terrible. And the trailer was so bad it became a literal meme. However, this evening I was looking for an easy watch and saw that the reviews are surpassingly high. So I thought I’d give it a go.
Firstly, this is largely a musical. And despite a catchy chorus here and there it’s not especially special. The film is also not really about chocolate and sweets, which I found a bit disappointing. I wanted to see towers of sugar as far as the eye can see. But Wonka as chocolatier could have been removed and it wouldn’t have changed much.
This is directed by Paul King, who did the Paddington’s, and you can tell. They both have a visual charm that I really like. The comedic style is similar too. And it shares a lot of the same actors
However, Wonka ain’t Paddington. Paddington is fun for the whole family. Whereas I’d argue Wonka will be highly enjoyable for the kids, but there’s not enough here for the adults.
The film is rather sweet and watchable. But it just feels weirdly lifeless. I won’t be running back to rewatch it.
48%
Adequately put together and fairly fun, but this was merely okay.
The whole Wall Street vs. the working person story felt forced at times and it didn’t lead to a satisfying conclusion in the final act.
The ‘dumb’ bad guys were comically dumb. And the ‘scary’ bad guys weren’t scary enough.
However, the reviews for this are fairly strong and my girlfriend enjoyed it, so I’m in a minority.
And this was weirdly watchable and fun. And I always enjoy seeing Paul Dano on screen. He always brings the human to his roles, and this one is no different. 58%
Perfect weather for staying indoors and watching 📺 “Clarkson’s Farm”. As a winterbug I’m loving this June weather.
I’ve been rewatching those stunt/dare/prank reality shows of my teenage years, like Jackass and Viva la Bam.
I just finished 🍿 “Jackass Forever”. They did introduce a few too many new people and it relied a bit too much on dick jokes, but overall it was better than I remembered. 62/100
🍿 Rewatching “Bullet Train”. It’s a fun popcorn film. 64.
And it’s worth watching just for its array of bad British accents on display. “Wroof”. youtube.com/shorts/li…
